During the week, as I arrive home from work and am beginning to think about dinner, I typically find myself feeling one of two ways:
1. AH my day has been crazy and I am so stressed out why can’t I just win the lottery so I can cook all day long and travel the world?!?!?
2. Do I really have to cook tonight? I’m tired and just want to drink a bottle of red wine and watch reality TV.
In the first scenario the best solution is a dinner that is a bit detailed and that cooks slowly, so I can throw myself into it and forget about everything else. Kitchen therapy at its finest – how I survive. Thankfully I don’t travel down this road too often and am typically in scenario #2 – give me something easy, quick and satisfying but still ‘foodie-girl’ worthy. Pasta with clam sauce is the perfect anecdote and will have you in front of the TV with wine and the Kardashians in no time, your feet propped up and your significant other giving you a foot massage asking how you could have possibly made such an amazing and elegant dinner in so little time – how did they get so lucky??? Just smile knowingly back at them – it will be our little secret.
If you have been reading my blog you have probably noticed that I like to start cooking by assembling everything I’m going to need. This way I am not frantically searching my cabinets for the crushed pepper flakes or scrambling to find that one lemon I was 99% sure I still had lying around. Makes for a more relaxing experience and helps get dinner on the table faster. Tonight I will need the following – one quarter tsp crushed pepper flakes, three cloves garlic minced, two shallots, one lemon (zest and juice), one can whole baby clams, one half cup heavy cream, clam juice, parmesan cheese, parsley, olive oil and spaghetti. I store handmade pasta in my freezer and am using that in this case. Just follow my recipe here and, once you have cut the pasta, dust it with just a little bit of flower, shape the strands into these cute little nests, and store in the freezer, in a single layer in an airtight bag or container. Obviously dried pasta will work perfectly for this dish as well and feel free to play around with the shape – linguine or penne are lovely. Before you get started go ahead and put a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil.
Dice the shallots and mice the garlic. I like shallots for this dish because they are more delicate and will blend into the sauce better than an onion would. They impart the same flavors so if you only have an onion on hand not to worry – it is a perfect substitute. Just make sure to give it a fine dice. You don’t want to bite into a big chunk of onion.
Set a pan over medium heat and add one quarter cup of olive oil. Let warm and then add the shallots, cooking for three minutes. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and stir, sauteing for one minute. Do not let the garlic burn. Season with kosher salt and pepper.
Now for the star – the clams. If I were making this dish for a dinner party I would use live clams, in the shell for this dish. It’s a weeknight though and those are not something I keep on hand. Canned clams are inexpensive and can hang out in your pantry until you are ready for them. Add the clams with their juices to the pan and stir. Allow to warm for one minute.
While there is a ton of great ‘ocean’ flavors in the can of clams, it needs a little help. Clam juice is found in pretty much all grocery stores and I try to always keep a jar handy. Add 8 ounces to the pan and increase the heat to medium-high. Allow the sauce to reduce for five minutes, stirring often.
While the sauce is reducing, zest your lemon. A microplane or hand shredder will work well for this. You only want the yellow part of the peel, not the white pith. It’s bitter. The skin of the lemon has a ton of flavor and will melt into the sauce, giving it more depth of flavor than just using the juice. It also has lots of natural oils which are released when zested. The zest of one lemon, about one tbs, is all you need. Hang on to the lemon, you’ll need the juice in just a bit.
Once the clam mixture has reduced by about half, add one half cup heavy cream, the lemon zest, and the juice of one half of a lemon.
Continue to cook on medium-high heat for five minutes, stirring often, allowing the cream to bind the sauce and reduce as well, becoming thick and silky. Add kosher salt and black pepper to taste – and do taste this as you go… there is a fair amount of saltiness with the clams but if you don’t help it out by adding a little more, the sauce will fall flat.
While the sauce is simmering, add a handful of kosher salt to your pot of boiling water and add the pasta, cooking until al dente – tender but still has a little bite to it. If you are using frozen, fresh pasta, it will only take 4-5 minutes to cook. Add the cooked pasta directly to the pan and toss to combine. Keep the heat on at this point. The pasta will finish cooking in the sauce, absorbing every delicious bit. Toss on the heat for one minute.
Remove from the heat and add one quarter cup chopped parsley. This adds color and freshness – herbs really do make a difference. Transfer to plates and top with freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Continue reading for the ingredient list and step-by-step directions!
Serves Two (Large Entree Portions)
- one quarter tsp crushed pepper flakes
- three cloves garlic, minced
- two shallots, diced
- one lemon (zest and juice)
- one can whole baby clams
- one half cup heavy cream
- 8 oz clam juice
- two tbs parmesan cheese
- one quarter cup chopped parsley
- one quarter cup olive oil
- two servings spaghetti
