BAKED STUFFED CLAMS OREGANATO
SEASONED WITH GARLIC AND OREGANO
Serves 3 to 4 as an appetizer course. May be easily adjusted to increase servings.
I have a confession to make. I
never ate clams, cooked or raw, until I had them oreganato style. Now I enjoy them in all types of dishes. Except for raw, that is.
This is a flavorfull, but an easy recipe to prepare. It's easy because I use those little 6 1/2 ounce cans of chopped clams. Do not use the minced clams because the pieces are too small.
INGREDIENTS
Each 6 1/2 ounce can of chopped clams is equal to 8
medium sized clams and will fill 3 to 4 medium to large
scallop shells.
So, for each 6 1/2 ounce can of clams, you will need the
following ingredients.
- 1 6 1/2 oz. Can chopped clams. Drain and reserve the
liquid.
- 1/2 Small onion, chopped.
- 2 Large garlic cloves, chopped fine.
- 1/2 Stalk celery, chopped fine.
- 1 Large red radish, minced.
- 1/4 Green bell pepper, chopped fine.
- 1 Small tomato, seeded and finely chopped.
- 1/2 Cup Fresh, unseasoned, bread crumbs.
- 1/4 Cup Grated parmesan cheese.
- 2 Tbs. Parsley, chopped.
- 1 Tsp. Dry oregano, crumbled.
- 1/2 Tsp Red pepper flakes.
- 1/2 Tsp. Salt or to taste.
- 1/4 Tsp. Pepper or to taste.
- 1 Cup Chicken stock or broth.
- Olive oil for drizzling over
stuffing.
PREPARATION
- Place onion, garlic, celery, radish, green pepper,
tomato, parsley, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and
pepper into the work bowl of a food processor and
WHIZ a bit to combine the ingredients.
- Add bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and
WHIZ
quickly. Do not make a paste.
- Remove blade from processor and fluff with a fork to
remove any lumps that may have formed. Dump in drained
clams and fluff again. No globs please! If too moist,
add a bit more crumbs.
- Fill shells with "FLUFFED-UP"mixture.
- Arrange filled shells in baking pan. Drizzle each
filled shell with about 1/4 teaspoon olive oil, 1/4 to
1/2 teaspoon reserved clam juice and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon
chicken stock.
- Mix remaining chicken stock and clam juice and pour
into bottom of baking pan.
- Place pan into a PRE-HEATED,400°F. oven. Bake 10
to 15 minutes to heat and brown. If you desire a darker,
crusty surface place in a broiler. Watch closely. It
will burn quickly.
- Drizzle pan juices evenly over clams and serve
immediately.
NOTES
- You may also use small sized clam shells in place of
the scallop shells. In which case, you would need about
8 to 10 shells to each can of clams.
- About a 1/4 cup of dry white wine or vermouth added
to the baking pan, adds an extra nice layer of flavor to
the finished product.
- Should you have additional pan juices, it is great to
use for "sopping-up" with crusty french
bread.
- You might consider serving french cheese flavored
gourgeres with your
appetizer courses. They really add a touch of elegance
to the meal.
- A nice dry white or light dry red wine would be an
excellent accompaniment. As would champagne.
