Ingredients
- 1 lb manila clams or other bivalves - surf clams
- 3/4 lb cherry or baby plum tomato, halved
- 2 clove garlic, thinly sliced
- a pinch of hot red pepper flakes
- 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2/3 cup white wine
- 2 cup cooked, drained cannellini beans
- 3 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 8 basil leaves, torn
Directions
Heat a very wide pan over a very high heat until it smokes. Combine the clams, tomatoes, garlic, pepper flakes and oil in a bowl (if your pan's not going to be wide enough to hold them all in more or less a single layer, omit the clams for now and add them after the tomatoes have fried for a couple of minutes). When you think the pan shouldn’t possibly get any hotter, add the bowlful of ingredients all at once.
Cook, shaking the pan from time to time until a few of the clams pop open. Season with pepper and a tiny bit of salt and add the wine. Let it bubble for a minute, then add the cannellini beans and parsley. Boil until the beans are hot through, and the last of the clams have popped open - not very long. Stir in the basil and serve immediately.
Recipe courtesy of Bocca: Cookbook by Jacob Kenedy/Bloomsbury, 2011.