Pesto Tomato Clams Recipes

SUN-DRIED TOMATO PESTO

Steps:

• Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and cover with warm water for 5 minutes, or until tender.
• In a food processor or blender combine sun-dried tomatoes, basil, parsley, garlic, pine nuts and onion; process until well blended. Add vinegar, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes and red wine, and process. Stir in olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Season with salt to taste.

PESTO TOMATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Slice tomatoes in half, and scoop out about a tablespoon of flesh from the center of each half. Fill pocket with pesto, and sprinkle generously with cheese. Place tomato halves in a well oiled baking dish.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese is melted and bubbly, and slightly browned. Serve warm.

PASTA WITH CLAMS, CORN, AND BASIL PESTO

Steps:

• Make the pesto:
• In a blender or food processor, combine garlic, Parmigiano, basil, and oil and blend until very smooth, scraping down sides as needed and adding a tablespoon or two of water if needed to get things moving. Add lemon zest and season with salt and pepper. Set pesto aside (you should have about 1/2 cup).
• Cook the clams and pasta:
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta and season it generously with salt. In a medium Dutch oven or large cast-iron skillet, heat butter and oil over medium-high heat. When butter is foaming, add garlic, shallots, and reserved basil stems and cook until mixture is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add wine and bring to a simmer. Add clams, toss to coat, cover, and cook, checking and stirring every few minutes, until clams begin to open, 3 to 5 minutes. As clams open, transfer them with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl, but try to keep pot covered as much as possible. Fish out basil stems and keep pan sauce warm over very low heat. (If you want a shell-free dining experience, gently liberate clams from their shells and return them to bowl with a splash or two of pasta water over them so they don't dry out.)
• Cook pasta until 1 or 2 minutes shy of al dente. Scoop 1 cup of pasta water into pan with clam sauce. Drain pasta and add to sauce along with half of the pesto. Add corn and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook, stirring, until liquid starts to thicken and pasta is al dente, about 2 minutes. Add clams and any accumulated liquid from bowl. Cook, stirring and tossing, until clams are warmed through, 2 minutes. Serve pasta and clams topped with more pesto.

PESTO-TOMATO CLAMS

Steps:

• Bring wine, garlic, and crushed red pepper to boil in heavy extra-large pot. Add clams. Cover and cook until clams open, about 9 minutes. Using slotted spoon or tongs, transfer clams to 4 large bowls (discard any clams that do not open). Stir tomatoes and pesto into pot and bring to simmer. Ladle pesto broth over clams and serve.

SUMMER CLAM STEW WITH PESTO

Steps:

• Combine the clams and 1 cup water in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cover and cook until they start to open, about 5 minutes. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the clams to a bowl; discard any unopened clams. Pour the clam juices into a liquid measuring cup (avoid the sediment from the bottom of the pot). Wipe out the pot. Cover the clams to keep warm.
• Add the olive oil to the pot and set over medium-high heat. Add the onion, diced fennel, a big pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and red pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until mostly dry, about 2 minutes. Add enough water to the clam juices to equal 3 cups, then add the liquid to the pot, cover and bring to a boil.
• Meanwhile, trim the green beans and cut into 1-inch pieces. Add to the pot along with the pasta and cannellini beans and their liquid. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Add more water, if needed; season with salt and pepper. Stir in the clams and heat through.
• Divide the soup among bowls. Top with chopped fennel fronds and the pesto.

CLAMS IN TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan, tip in the shallots and garlic cook until softened, but not coloured.
• Add a splash of sherry and the tomatoes and cook to reduce slightly, about 10 minutes. Add the pesto and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
• Heat the remaining sherry and a little water in a steamer and steam the clams until all are open, about 3 minutes.
• Pour a couple of tablespoons of the juice into the tomato sauce. Cook a little more to bring to a coating consistency.
• Pour the sauce over the clams and stir to combine; transfer to serving bowls and eat while still hot.

LINGUINE WITH RED PESTO CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Cook linguine in a large pot of salted water. Boil for 1 minute less than the instructions on the box say to cook it for. Strain but do not rinse.
• Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. Add onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes or until translucent. Do not brown them.
• Strain the liquid from the clams and add liquid to pan. Set clams aside. Add the white wine and white wine vinegar and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 4 minutes. Lower heat slightly. Add clams, pesto, oregano and nutmeg to wine mixture and heat through. Stir until combined and salt and pepper to taste.
• Add warm pasta and parsley, heat through and toss to combine. Garnish with parmesan and parsley and serve immediately!

LINGUINE WITH CLAMS AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Slice the garlic and chop the fresh thyme. Combine with wine in a pot large enough for all ingredients.
• Scrub clams and add to pot. Bring to a boil and cook until the clam shells open. As they open, remove them from the pot and set aside. Continue cooking broth until it is reduced by half.
• Bring water to a boil for the linguine in a covered pot.
• Wash and trim the tomatoes, and cut in half. Squeeze out the seeds. Chop tomatoes in a food processor or with a knife. When the broth has been reduced, add the fish stock or clam juice and chopped tomatoes, and cook over high heat, continuing to reduce the liquid slightly.
• Cook the linguine according to package directions.
• Remove the clams from their shells, and pour any reserved liquid from them into the pot.
• Wash and dry basil, and cut into thin strips.
• Drain the pasta, and add to the sauce with the clams; stir to blend, and serve topped with basil.

HARD-SHELL CLAMS WITH PARSLEY PESTO

Steps:

• Turn on broiler and put a large cast-iron skillet under it while you make parsley pesto. Combine parsley with a pinch of salt, garlic and about half the oil in a food processor or blender. Process, stopping to scrape down sides of container if necessary, and adding rest of oil gradually. Add vinegar or lemon juice, then a little water to thin mixture slightly. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Carefully remove skillet from broiler, add clams to it and return to broiler. They should all open more or less at once, within 10 minutes; remove them as soon as they do to preserve their juices, and put on a plate. Dab each with parsley sauce and serve hot. (Any clams that do not open are safe to eat; open them with a dull knife, or continue to broil a few minutes longer.)