Celebrating the ‘season of deception’ with clams

Yes, it’s the season of deception, which happens in New England just before, sometimes during or even after mud season. You know what I mean: Beautiful blue skies and temperatures in the 60s and 70s, the snow has all gone, we shed our heavy coats, pop on some cut-off jeans and dig in the garden.

Then, when we least expect it, we look outside to what we’ve been treated to this past week — more snow or sleet. Never fear, it will turn to rain, right?

I’m always reminded of the Robert Frost poem “Two Tramps in Mud Time”:

When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You’re one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
A cloud comes over the sunlit arch,
A wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you’re two months back in the middle of March.

The only thing to do is add something tasty to our menu, preferably something that at least nods at better weather. This week, the fish market had both steamers and very large quahogs, and the latter definitely caught my eye.

Our family loves New England clams in any form. Deep fried of course while visiting the shore with lots of tangy tartar sauce. A summer treat. Or steamed with all the dunking and slurping rituals at a cookout. We’ll find them in a silky chowder, tossed in a simple white wine and garlic sauce over spaghetti, and in clam dip, too.

But one of our favorites is the traditional New England stuffed clam, a “stuffie” if you will, with a wide range of variations and possibilities. The stuffing can be as simple as a little breading with sauteed onions and celery; usually some fresh parsley is involved or it may be flavored with chorizo in the Rhode Island-style with its nod to its Portuguese culture.

This version is flavorful and moist, with a crispy top, scented with herbes de Provence and chives.

New England boasts two distinct varieties of clams, hard and soft shells. Hard shell, referred to as quahogs (pronounce co-hog). Quahogs take their name from the native Narragansett “poquauhocks.” They are sold by size and include countnecks, topnecks, littlenecks, mahogany, cherrystone and the larger chowder or beach clams usually referred to simply as quahogs.

Soft-shell clams are the basic steamers, and the shell is not really soft, so I’m not sure where this designation comes from. They have a long neck, hence their alternate name of longnecks, and often called “pisser” clams as well because they can tend to spray the harvester. Quite an image.

However you use the clams of any type, buying and prepping them properly is essential, but pretty easy.

Look for clams that are solidly shut with absolutely no cracks or chips. Have the fish monger check each one, they can tell as they pack them. Although best to buy at a fish market, you can find them easily in New England and elsewhere in supermarkets at the fish counter, but you’ll probably have someone inexperienced packing your clams, so watch them like a hawk. Don’t let them put the clams in a tied-up plastic bag, they need to breathe. Mesh is best, then paper. If they have to be in plastic, don’t let them close the bag. Ask for ice as well.

No matter how you are going to cook them, you’ll have to give them a cleansing soak in salt water first to remove the sand and sea grit in the shell. Fill a bowl with a couple of quarts of cold water and add a couple of tablespoons of coarse salt. My mom used to also add cornmeal to aid in the purging, but I don’t bother with this any longer, and it doesn’t seem to matter. Sorry, Mom.

Gently place the clams in the water and let soak for a half hour and up to an hour. When ready, gently remove them from the water and scrub off any debris with a stiff brush. This is a good time for a last inspection.

Note: Sometimes if your water is room temperature or warmer, the clams will open up slightly. Just give them the tiniest of taps on the counter and they should close again. Next time, make sure your water is cold.
Now you are ready to cook.
For these stuffies, I used Maine beach or topneck quahogs about 2 1/2 inches wide. Two made a perfect appetizer.

New England stuffies

Soak and scrub eight or nine quahog or beach clams, about 2 1/2 inches in size. Open them with a thin, sturdy knife (I use my oyster knife) over a bowl to catch all the liquid, this is gold. Insert the knife at the hinge and twist the knife. The clam should release easily.

Run the knife along the top to loosen all around, taking care not to jab the clams. Cut the clam away from the shell and drop in the juice then open the rest. Chop up the clams and return to the liquid. Tuck these in the refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the filling, and clean and rinse out the shells to use as a baking vessel. You can make this in a casserole dish.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.
In a medium sauté pan, to a tablespoon of oil and one of butter add:
1 large or two small shallots, minced
1/2 cup minced mushrooms of choice
1 rib of celery, minced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp. herbes de Provence
1 tsp. minced chives
Season with pepper, no salt needed, and cook until soft and starting to brown on the edges.

Add:
1/2 cup of dry white wine.
Let this simmer until the wine is reduced to almost nothing.
Place the vegetables in the bowl with the clams and juice.

Grate or process:
2 slices whole wheat bread
2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
Mix these together and add a little at a time to the rest of the ingredients until you have a moist stuffing consistency. You may have some bread left over, or you may need to grate a bit more depending on how much juice was in the clams.

Pack the shells tightly with the stuffing mixture. There are no eggs in this dish, the flavor of them is too pronounced, so you want to mound the stuffing in each clam.

Place on crumpled foil on a sheet pan to keep the clams from rocking. Spritz with a bit more olive oil or brush with butter, cover, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on size. Turn on the broiler and continue cooking until the tops are browned and you can see bubbling on the sides.

Top with a few more chives and serve with lemon slices.

Now, if by chance we get a 75-degree day, you can also dig out your cut-offs and cook these on the grill for a lovely smoky flavor.