Tonight’s Monday Night Matchup pits the New England Patriots against the New York Jets. What better way to brighten the beleaguered seasons’ of these two teams than to mash-up their go-to regional dishes? New England brings their iconic clam chowder. What screams Jets - ya know, that other team from NY that also actually plays in NJ - more than some spicy Clams Casino?! Sampling the garnish for these broiled clams immediately transported me to an Italian restaurant in Asbury Park. Paired with the soul-warming clam chowder, it provides a unique, balanced bite which will make you forget it’s Monday night and the fact that you're actually watching these two teams attempt to play football.
Clam Chowdered Casino
makes 70 half-shells
50 littleneck clams (approx 3 lbs), scrubbed/rinsed clean
6 slices bacon, divided and diced
Onion
Butter
Flour
2 small potatoes (about ¾ lb), scrubbed clean
Bay leaf
1 tsp minced fresh thyme
¾ cup cream
Shallot
Small red pepper
Parsley
Garlic
Oyster crackers
Parmesan cheese
Extra-virgin olive oil
White wine
Discard any cracked or dead clams. Place the remaining clams in a large pot and cover with 2 inches of water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. After the clams have boiled for a minute or two, pull the clams out with tongs and place in a large bowl to cool. Reserve 2.5 cups of clam cooking water.
Rinse out the pot and render 2/3 of the bacon over medium heat. When starting to crisp, add in 1 tbsp of butter and the minced onion with a pinch of salt. While the bacon and onion sauté, mince your cleaned, unpeeled potatoes. After the onion has softened, sprinkle on 1.5 tbsp of flour. Stir constantly to incorporate and cook the flour. Then, add in the potatoes and reserved clam water, minced thyme and bay leaf and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Meanwhile, pull the clams from the shell, reserving the smooth shells that don’t have any clam muscles stuck to the inside, but not less than 70 half-shells.
When the water has nearly evaporated, stir in the cream and some freshly cracked black pepper. Meanwhile, mince the clam meat. Once the cream has reduced by a third, taste for any seasoning needs. Stir in the minced clams and remove from the heat. Set aside to cool and prepare the garnish.
Mince the remaining 2 slices of bacon and render over medium-high heat in a small non-stick skillet. Meanwhile, mince your shallot, red pepper and a fistful of parsley leaves. When the bacon has crisped, remove it with a slotted spoon to a paper-towel lined plate to cool. Saute the shallot and red pepper in the same pan in the reserved bacon grease. While the veg sautées, place 2 handfuls of oyster crackers in a mini food processor and pulse about 8 times.
When the shallot and red pepper have softened slightly, stir in 2 cloves of minced garlic and a pinch of red pepper flakes for a minute until fragrant, then stir in the minced parsley and remove from the heat. Stir in the pulsed oyster cracker crumbs and ~2 tbsp of grated parmesan cheese.
Preheat the broiler with a rack on the top shelf and line a baking sheet with tin foil sprayed with cooking spray. Using the reserved empty clam shells, scoop a little of the reserved clam chowder and place on the baking sheet. Don’t overstuff the shells. You should be able to get 30 stuffed shells on the tray. Then, take a pinch of the oyster-crumb mixture and place on each stuffed shell.
Placing your thumb partially over the wine bottle, “spray” the shells with wine. Sprinkle on some additional grated parmesan and drizzle with olive oil.
Broil for about 2-3 minutes until golden brown, not charred. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.
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Copyright 2020, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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