Clams Oreganata and Linguine con broccoli, aglio e olioe vongole

I love spring and the wonderment of starting all over. The grass is getting greener, daffodils and tulips are peeking out and robins are pecking at the cool earth. I can actually smell it in the air. With Easter around the corner and Lent being upon us, some of us are celebrating meatless Fridays and we all know that it can get a little monotonous at times.  In honor of Lent, I will prepare clams oreganata and linguine with broccoli, garlic and oil; a light and easy meal that is worthy of a few quests.

The shopping list includes two dozen little neck clams which can be purchased at Giant Farmer’s Market in Hackensack. Helpful hint: Soak the clams in ice water for an hour to aid in the elimination of grit and then scrub the outsides. Two pounds linguine, fresh parsley and basil, three to four cups fresh or frozen broccoli coarsely chopped, two can diced tomatoes, 10-15 chopped cloves of garlic, olive oil, 1 ½ cups breadcrumbs, lemon zest, juice of ½ lemon, salt, ½ teaspoon dry minced onion, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and red pepper flakes.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Fill a pot with water and set to boil.

Heavily coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil and sauté the garlic. Add the broccoli, diced tomatoes, one tablespoon of each chopped parsley and basil and ¼ teaspoon of grated lemon peel, which is called zest. Pour in two cups of water. Cover and simmer on medium heat.

Place all the clams on a cookie sheet and bake in the oven for two to three minutes. Set your timer, you do not want to cook them through and through. The heat will help to open them. They may do so at different times. Carefully remove the ones that are open and return the pan to the oven, setting the clock again for one minute. When all the clams are open, shuck them, scrape and separate the clam into one half of its shell. Discard the extra shell. Lay the clams on the cookie sheet and squeeze the juice out of ½ a lemon over them and set aside. 

Turn the oven to broil.

In a small bowl add the breadcrumbs, a generous amount of chopped fresh basil and parsley, ¼ teaspoon lemon zest, garlic powder, minced onion, salt and a bit of red pepper, depending on your tolerance to heat. Add ¾ cup olive oil and mix well.

Put linguine in the water and prepare as directed on package. When cooked to your desired tenderness, strain and plate with a heaping ladle of broccoli.

Take a teaspoon or so of breadcrumb mixture and cover each clam. Broil on the top rack of your oven for approximately three to five minutes. Be careful not to burn them.

Soon enough we’ll be hopping down the bunny trail and winter will be a distant memory.

Until next time, mangiare bene!