Linguine alle Vongole

Linguine alle vongole is one of our favorite dishes to enjoy at one of our favorite restaurants in town, Maison Carlos. It is also a treat to make this dish alongside my sons and also get to enjoy it with them as well. I’ve adapted this recipe from Miss Robbins’s Pasta cookbook.

Ingredients

• 3 dozen littleneck clams
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• 5 cloves garlic, sliced
• 3 cups white wine
• 10 sprigs thyme
• 1 tsp dried red chile flakes
• 1lb linguine
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• Peel of 1 lemon, pith removed and peel finely chopped, and fruit halved and reserved for juicing
• ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
• Dried red chile flakes
• French Butter, we prefer Echire

Prepare

1. First, to prepare the clams, place them in a bowl of cold water to soak.
2. Every 10 minutes, drain, rinse away the grit that has accumulated at the bottom of the bowl, and refill with fresh water, continuing until you see no grit after draining, after at least 1 hour of soaking.
3. Next, place a large sauté pan over medium heat and add the olive oil and the shallot.
4. Add the sliced garlic and cook until aromatic but without color, 10 to 15 seconds.
5. Working in batches, add the clams to the pan along with the wine, thyme, and chile flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the first clam opens. If you want to speed up this process, cover the pan to cook the clams, but begin checking them after 1 minute, removing each one as soon as it opens and transferring it to a bowl or plate.
6. To finish, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.

Pasta

1. Generously salt the water.
2. Add the spaghetti to the water and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until al dente.
3. While the pasta is cooking place a large sauté pan over low heat.
4. Add the olive oil and chopped garlic and cook until aromatic but without color, 10 to 15 seconds. Add the reserved clam cooking liquid to the pan. Add the butter and swirl to emulsify. transfer to the sauté pan. Turn the heat up to medium. Use tongs to transfer to sauté pan. Turn the heat to medium Toss and remove the pasta from the pot and 2 minutes to marry the pasta and the sauce.
5. Now add the chopped and whole clams and continue to toss for about 30 seconds to distribute the clams evenly and to continue marrying the pasta and the sauce. If the sauce begins to tighten, add a splash of pasta cooking water to loosen and continue tossing. (Check your seasoning, and if it’s already quite briny, use a splash of fresh water to loosen instead.) When the pasta is properly married, it will cling to the sauce and have a glossy sheen
6. Add the lemon peel and parsley, season with chile flakes q.b., and toss to combine.
7. Remove from the heat and add a tsp of Echire butter to each dish and toss.
8. Finally, squeeze in the juice from the lemon halves and divide into bowls.