Linguine and Clams

I belong to a cooking group on Facebook (big surprise, I know). Recently, one of the members suggested we have a weekly contest. Every Wednesday, we take photos and post what we made for dinner that night. Everyone votes by "like", and whichever photo gets the most votes by the next day is used as the cover photo for the week.

Last week, I was wracking my brain to come up with something. Something beautiful. I had a couple ideas in mind when I happened to drive past one of our local fish shops. The reader board said they had Manila clams. BINGO!! Of course, it was as tasty as it is pretty!!

And yes, this dish won.

Linguine and Clams

1 lb. linguine
2 T. olive oil
3 lbs. Manila clams (steamers)
3/4 C. white wine
4 T. butter
8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 pinch red chile flakes, or more to taste
few sprigs of parsley (stems and all)
1/2 C. minced parsley, reserving some for garnish
Grated Parmesan

Cook linguine for minimum time according to package directions (you want it to be al dente); drain. Toss with olive oil and set aside.

Meanwhile, scrub the clams and place in a large pot with the wine and parsley sprigs. Cover with a lid, bring to a boil, and cook for 5 minutes or until all of the clams are open (mine were done just about the time they came to a boil... try to not overcook them). Remove clams to a bowl. Strain the cooking liquid through a sieve lined with several layers of dampened cheesecloth, to remove any debris. Remove clam meat from shells, reserving a few in shell for garnish.

Melt butter in the same pot you cooked the clams in. Add garlic, chile flakes, and parsley. Sauté for a couple minutes, then add the strained cooking liquid and bring to a boil. Add the clams and pasta. Toss everything together to heat through, allowing the noodles to soak up most of the liquid. Garnish with clams in shells, reserved minced parsley, and Parmesan.