LC Hurrah For Herb Butter Note
This clams casino recipe starts with a fast and fresh herb butter. The herbs suggested here—chives, parsley, tarragon and garlic—are perfectly suited to these little clams with their bacon blankets. However, if you happened to have a different compound butter already made up, you could easily exercise a little artistic license and experiment with different combinations. And if you haven’t yet ventured into the world of compound butters, our basic compound butter with parsley, lemon and pepper is a safe starting point, although if you’re feeling daring there’s the sweet and fiery chili honey butter. Once you have any of these versatile butters in the fridge, you’ll find that they go with more or less everything.
Clams Casino
Ingredients
Directions
In a mortar and pestle, mash together the herbs, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the butter and mash together.
Cook the bacon until just cooked through but not crisp. Remove from the heat and cut in 1-inch pieces.
Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Cover a baking sheet with a 1/2-inch-thick layer of rock salt, if using. Heat in the oven for 5 minutes. Now preheat the broiler.
Place the clams casinos on top of the salt (this is just to keep them steady). Top each with about 2 drops lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon of the butter mixture. Lay a piece of bacon over the top. (The clams casino can be prepped ahead of time up to this point.)
Place the clams under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes, until the butter is sizzling. Serve the clams casino immediately.
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