I learned this dish from a great local bistro, Cafe Torre.
Very simple to make, and great flavors from the Gorgonzola cheese.
Ingredients:
- butter
- olive oil
- wine (we used white, see note below*)
- Small clams
- garlic
- tomato
- fresh herbs; basil and/or oregano
Cooking:
- dice the garlic and the tomato
- heat olive oil and butter in a pan (about a tablespoon each is enough)
- simmer the garlic until a little brown and the pan is nice and hot, but not too hot to burn the butter
- toss in the clams, if the pan is hot enough, they will sizzle and open in a couple minutes
- this is a good time to season with salt and pepper
- toss in the diced tomato
- the juice from the clams should keep the pan moist and steamy, let them open in their own juices, then add the wine a little later. How much wine? About a half cup, there should be 1/4 to 1/2 inch in the bottom of the pan
- taste and season w/salt if needed
- the clams will eventually open in a few minutes, they are done any time they are open. You can let them cook a little longer, but not too long or they will get rubbery
- take the clams off the heat and serve in a nice bowl or even right in the pan
- just before serving, crumble some gorgonzola over top. How much? Not too much, a couple tablespoons will do, it is a very strong cheese. You can always add more if you like the strong flavor.
- It is nice to toss some fresh herbs over top; basil or oregano would be nice
* A note about the wine. The flavor of the dish will be strongly affected by the flavor of the wine. Don't use a cheap or old and stale wine, the one I used was just "ok", a better wine will be better. The seasoning and gorgonzola masked the flavors, so in the end it was pretty tasty. However, after this I am embarking on a quest to find a good inexpensive white wine for this dish.
