Ingredients:
- 2 pounds (4 cups) fresh sea clams, minced
- 1/2 pound linguica, casings removed and finely chopped
- 4 stalks celery, minced
- 1 large onion, minced
- 1/2 loaf (approximately 8 oz) Jewish Rye bread with seeds, roughly torn into small pieces
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup ketchup (we prefer Heinz)
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tablespoon of black pepper
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
- 8 oz bottled clam juice (or liquid from the clams you mince in your grinder)
- Clam Shells (to stuff)
For the Topping:
- 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
- 4 tablespoons of melted buter
- 1/2 shredded parmesan cheese
Process:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the stuffing and mix well until all of the ingredients are evenly blended together. Lightly rub olive oil on the inside of each clean clam shell, then fill generously.
- For the topping, melt butter in a saute pan over low heat. Add the bread crumbs. When the butter and bread crumbs are mixed well, add the grated Parmesan cheese and stir well again. Sprinkle the topping over each stuffed clam. Place the stuffed clams on a sheet pan and bake for 45-55 minutes. The top should be lightly browned.
- Stuffed clams are perfect right out of the oven but can be enjoyed all day long. Add hot sauce if desired.
- Yield 24-30 clams
- Chardonnay, which is lightly oaked with notes of green apple. We age this wine in French oak barrels for 6 weeks, to 2 months, just long enough to give it a hint of oak and vanilla. The wine is crisp and light and pairs perfectly with the stuffed clams.