Littlenecks and Shrimp with Pasta

Came across some gorgeous local littlenecks this afternoon... just couldn't resist! (Nor could I resist a slab of triple cream brie, but that's another weakness I'll get into some other time.) The last of the Maine shrimp are still in local fish delis, so I grabbed a pound of those, too.  What to make?  Well, I intended on sauteeing them in wine and garlic and serving them with some crusty bread (a super fast and easy meal), but the bag of whole wheat pasta I spotted in my pantry sort of called out to me, so into pasta they went.  I wish I had used conventional linguini; I hate that damn healthy stuff.  But in the end, it was a tasty dish!

Scrub your clams well (I used 2lbs for this recipe), and I highly suggest you allow for some soaking/purging time in case they're sandy.  Unwind with a cold beer while you're waiting, or prep your aromatics (leeks, garlic, parsley...).  Either way, you'll not want to risk mouthfuls of sand and grit in a dish like this, so do the following:

Empty your clams into a large bowl and fill with ice-cold fresh water.  Add a little cornmeal--a tablespoon will do--and let them soak for an hour in the fridge.  You'll see them bubbling eventually, which means they're releasing sand.  The colder the water the better.

When ready to cook, simply lift them out of the water with your hands, rinse and set them aside.  Prepare a large pot of water for boiling, and prepare your aromatics if you haven't already.  For 1 lb of pasta (4 servings), use 1 cup of leeks and 3 or 4 cloves of garlic. 

Make sure to salt the pasta water liberally.  Cook pasta according to directions.  Next, heat a large, deep saute over med. high heat.  Add a glug of olive oil, and dump in finely chopped leeks and garlic.  Add 2 cups chopped canned tomatoes, with most of their juices, and heat until dry and sizzling.  Add a couple cups of sparkling wine or champagne (yes, I actually had some kicking around, leftover from Christmas!!), or any ol' white wine, but reduce your amount by 1/2 if you do use white wine.  Bring to simmer.  Add clams, cover, and cook for 4 or 5 minutes.  Checkfor all clams to be opened.  Really fresh clams have the ability to stay shut for quite some time*, so pluck out those that have opened as they open, and give any remaining ones an extra minute or so.

*Dead clams will not close up when tapped, so dispose of those.  (I bury them in the garden.  Don't laugh - they make for awesome fertilizer.  Just go deep enough to prevent predators from digging!)

Toss the sauce with a knob of butter, a healthy squeeze of lemon, chopped flat-leaf parsley, and add in the pasta and clams (and shrimp if using).  Serve with a glass of that wine!