dinner in just a few minutes
I don’t know about your kids, but Pikelet & Lollo love eating food associated with characters in their favorite books – see the Turkey Lurkey Fruit Plate recipe here thanks to the Henny Penny story. Last night’s dinner was clams and bacon steamed in beer and my Itty Bitty Foodies were thrilled they were going to eat Pam the Clam from their Dr Seuss “Tooth Book“.
“Clams have no teeth,” says Pam the clam. “I cannot eat hot dogs or ham.” “No teeth at all,” says Pam the clam. “I cannot eat roast leg of lamb. Or peanuts! Pizzas! Popcorn! SPAM! Not even huckleberry jam!”
Half way through the meal, I said to Pikelet ”Try the clam with a bit of bacon on top. Everything tastes better with bacon”. And Pikelet replied, “No Mama, everything tastes better with clams”.
Till our next Happy Meal!
Ingredients:
1 lb of clams
5-6 slices of bacon cut into bits
1/2 an onion chopped
1 clove garlic crushed
Parsley (fresh if you’ve got it)
1/2 cup beer (I used Shiner Bock)
1/2 cup chicken stock
Method:
Before starting check that your clams are alive. I usually do this by taking the ones that are open and giving them a few taps onto the kitchen table. They should be closed within a couple of minutes if they are alive. Otherwise discard. Once cooked, only eat those that are fully opened.
In a pot, fry bacon on medium high heat till the fatty part starts to turn brown. Pour out any oil from the bacon and if you need to, sop up the bacon oil with a paper towel. Add a drizzle of olive oil, and throw in onions and garlic. Fry for a couple of minutes till fragrant and the onions are translucent. Add in clams and give it a good stir for a minute. Pour in beer followed by the chicken stock. Bring to a boil on high heat. Cover and turn the heat back down to medium/low and let clams steam for 6-7 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley.
