Yum! Clam Linguine

One of the best things about living on the coast is our bounty of seafood! As you all know, I am not an oyster fan, but I do love clams, and they are easy to find at the local seafood market or grocery store.

I have had this recipe for over 20 years - the poor recipe card is almost in shreds and is curiously decorated with drops of butter? cream? clam juice? white wine? So easy to make and so incredibly rich and yummy! Simply take your time, and have all of the ingredients ready to go before starting....

Ingredients:

1 lb. of manilla clams shells still in their shells, scrubbed clean

6 T. of real butter (don't skimp!)

4 cloves minced/chopped garlic

1/2 tsp. of red pepper flakes

3/4 c. dry white wine (or more to taste if you're anything like Julia!)

1 1/2 cup cream (again, don't skimp!)

1 T lemon juice

2+ T fresh parsley chopped - I like Italian parsley for its flavor

2/3 c. Parmesan Cheese; shredded or shaved

Pasta - doesn't really matter what kind, this recipe is good on every kind of pasta. We've had it on spinach linguine many times, gorgeous presentation!

Melt butter,  then saute garlic and red pepper  in the butter til golden, add white wine and cream. Bring to a boil over medium high heat for 2 minutes. Add lemon juice, parsley and part of the Parmesan cheese, then add the clams. Put lid on sauce pan and let gently simmer while the clams slowly open in the sauce.

Cook pasta while clams are simmering, then drain. Toss pasta and clam sauce together and serve immediately topped with the remaining Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Hood Canal Oyster Adventure

Tom, my oyster aficionado boyfriend, came up to visit last weekend, so I thought I could show him some "real" oysters on the Hood Canal. We began our fun drive in Belfair and then around the South Shore, all the way around to Quilcene and then back across the Hood Canal Bridge at Shine.  For local (and not so local!) Sunday drive fans, this is just a great stretch of curvy road!  There are plenty of parks to stop at, interesting beaches to explore, a few wineries,  and farm fresh products to buy.  Not to mention the views of the Olympic Mountains to the West and the absolutely gorgeous homes to drool over and dream about.  Hmmmm.... one day maybe?

First Stop Twanoh State Park: If you haven't ever stopped here, you are missing a little jewel! The park was created by the CCC in the 1930's, most of the building are still used today - built of native logs and sturdy bricks.  The beach is covered in oysters and little manilla clams, all can be yours with a shellfish license, a bucket and a little grunt work.  Oysters have to be shucked on the beach, leaving the shells for future oysters to grow. Although it was a little cold and gray as we strolled out to the beach,  we didn't mind. Tom was amazed at the oysters just lying on the beach waiting to be shucked and taken home!

I offered to take pictures of a group of family and friends that we met on our walk, having the best time shucking oysters and then running up to bbq them and steam fresh clams.  Funny how while at the beach, it is so easy to make friends... so generous that they opened up oysters and shared them with Tom.  Wow! His first oyster fresh off of the beach!

Second Stop: Hunter Farms  just past Union on the way to Potlatch.  Great farmstand!  We were hoping to find some fresh oysters in the shell to buy, since we couldn't take any off of the beach.  No such luck here, but bought incredibly yummy local ice cream - french apple pie and pecan/caramel swirl.  In my opinion, some of the best ice cream I have ever eaten!  Lots of fresh corn on the cob, local squash, tomatoes and fruit.

Third Stop: Hoodsport Winery in Hoodsport  This winery has been producing wine on the Hood Canal for over 30 years!  What I think sets this winery apart is that they produce wines that are made of other fruits, more than just grapes. Blackberry, Raspberry, Apple, Pear.. Their most popular selling wine is Raspberry, the #2 seller is Rhubarb.  Tom and I were the only ones in the tasting room that afternoon - what fun!  We each got 6 tastings, please don't worry, they were small and we were still full of ice cream.

Of course, we had to ask what their recommendation was for enjoying with oysters. Believe it or not, it was the Rhubarb!  So, we bought a bottle of Rhubarb and a very nice 1999 vintage Lemberger-Cab.




Fourth Stop: Hama Hama Oyster Company!  This was pretty cool! You can buy smoked salmon, shucked oysters, seafood salad, but best of all you can pick out your own fresh oysters (still in the shell)  from their hand selected buckets.  We learned so much about cooking oysters that afternoon from the extremely helpful gal in their store!

Those of you that are oyster fans probably already know that if you buy oysters during the summer months they really are only good for bbq'ing.  Apparently, they are not plump because they are all used up from reproducing.  Raw oysters are better to eat  in the "r" months.  She told Tom some inside secrets about barbecuing the right way... that's him enjoying a Martini at Mom and Dad's house!

Have to admit that I was really, really trying to psych myself up to eat bbq'd oysters.  Tom was so excited about trying to cook them, and I didn't want to disappoint him, but just in case I picked out a bunch of manilla clams for me.  Love the colors on the shells, and boy did  they taste terrific steamed in a little white wine, sweet walla-wallas and garlic.  yum!