Pasta with Herbed Clam Sauce

 Keeping with the seafood theme, I wanted to share another really easy, but really delicious recipe that's great to serve in the summertime. The easy part is it can be made with things already found in your pantry, so you can whip it up in no time during the week or on the weekend. It's creamy and delicious (without ANY added cream!) and if you love pasta and clams, you'll LOVE this dish. Sorry Mel, you won't be able to eat this, but stay tuned... I've got an AWESOME Southwestern Style Pasta Salad coming up next that you can gobble up! This recipe was found at Epicurious.com and is from the July 1993 issue of Gourmet magazine. Huh... I was enjoying my summer before my senior year in high school when this recipe came out. I'm sure I would have loved it back then, too. I was a seafood FREAK! Ok, so to make this simple and just-what-you-want (if you're me) dish, start by cooking the shallot and the garlic in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until they are pale golden. Then, add the flour, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. 

 

Next, stir in the wine, the bottled clam juice (in my case since I didn't have clam juice on hand, I used chicken stock and suggest you do the same unless you want it to be over-poweringly clammy), and the clams with the juice and simmer the sauce, stirring, for 5 minutes. 

 

Now, pluck your lovely herbs from your herb garden... What? You don't have an herb garden? Why? Even people with black thumbs (like me) can grow herbs, I promise you. And there's nothing in the world like fresh herbs. Try a few plants this year... I promise you'll be hooked and growing every herb you can get your hands on next year. Pictured here is some beautiful thyme (smaller leaves) and oregano (bigger leaves). I didn't yet have flat leaf parsley, so I used dried. 

 

Stir in your herbs (don't be afraid to use whatever herbs YOU think taste good - don't let the recipe rule your taste buds!), and hit the mixture with some salt and pepper to taste. Simmer the sauce for a bit and as you can see, it begins to thicken. If it gets too thick on you, just thin it out with a bit more chicken stock. 

 

Now, while you were making your sauce, you should have been boiling your pasta in salted boiling water. To finish this dish, just take your cooked pasta and add it to your pan of sauce. Keeping the flame on low, toss the pasta in with the sauce and let it heat through for a couple minutes. This will help the flavors of the sauce penetrate the noodles and the dish will come together as one. 

 

That's it! Just plate your pasta and dig in! Easy to make and addicting to eat.  

 

Linguine with Herbed Clam Sauce  

Gourmet July 1993  

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. 

Servings: Serves 2.  

Ingredients 

1/2 cup chopped shallot 

2 garlic cloves forced through a garlic press 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter 

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 

1/3 cup dry white wine 

1 cup bottled clam juice 

10-ounce can whole baby clams including the juice 

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves 

2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves or 3/4 teaspoon dried, crumbled 

1/2 pound linguine

Preparation

In a deep skillet cook the shallot and the garlic in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until they are pale golden, add the flour, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the wine, the bottled clam juice, and the clams with the juice and simmer the sauce, stirring, for 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley, the thyme, and salt and pepper to taste and keep the sauce warm. In a kettle of salted boiling water boil the linguine until it is al dente, drain it, and in the skillet toss it with the clam sauce.