Baked Stuffed Clams

A family favorite of ours is baked stuffed clams. I have made them for picnics, Christmas day appetizers and now I am making them for a birthday party celebration for my son's partner, Michael who is turning the ripe young age of 35.

I've got clam shells simply because I save the shells after the goodies are consumed, scrub them out and run them through the dishwasher to sanitize them.

They are kept in plastic bags until the next time I make more of these delicious clams. I use little neck clam shells as the size is perfect for appetizers.

Rich, buttery, full of small baby clams, onion, celery and red bell pepper along with lots of spices and this is more than a one hit wonder. My son Jon makes this for his friends and serves it up casserole style and it's always a big hit. Can you freeze these? Yes, absolutely. Store the uncooked stuffed clams by covering them with plastic wrap in an airtight container. They last really well for about 3 months. If you cook them I would try and use them up within 30 days. Otherwise you may loose some of the flavor from freezing.

I use a food processor to "chop" the onion, celery and red pepper and to mince the bacon and grind the crackers.

• 4 - 10 oz. cans whole baby clams
• 1 large sweet onion - finely chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper - finely chopped
• 4 stalks celery - finely chopped
• 2 sleeves Lunch Milk Crackers - finely ground
• 1 sleeve Club Crackers - finely ground (or Ritz)
• 1 lb. bacon - cooked crispy
• 1 stick butter - plus 3 or 4 tbsp. melted butter for brushing the tops of the clams prior to baking.
• 1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. black pepper
• 1 1/2 tbsp. paprika
• 2 tbsp. parsley flakes
• 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated garlic

1. Layout bacon on a foil lined baking sheet and put in a 425° oven to get the bacon crispy. Get that going and continue on with the recipe.
2. In a food processor, finely grind the crackers and add them to a very large bowl.
3. Next grind the onion, celery and bell pepper until finely ground.
4. In a large skillet melt the stick of butter and over moderately low heat, saute the onion, celery and pepper.  Cook until the onion is translucent and the other veggies have soften.
5. Add this mixture to the bread crumbs.
6. When the bacon comes out of the oven, grind that in the food processor and add to the mixture of bread crumbs and celery, onion and peppers.
7. Open the 4 cans of clams and drain 1 can (save the clam juice just in case).  Add the 4 cans, juice and all to the mixture along with the drained clams.
8. Next, add in all of the spices and the Parmesan cheese. Using your hands, blend everything together. If the mixture seems to dry, add some of the reserved clam juice.
9. Like I said earlier - fill one clam shell and bake and taste for additional seasoning or more Parmesan cheese. Once you are satisfied, fill all the clam shells, brush tops with melted butter and bake uncovered at 350° degrees for approximately 30-40 minutes until the tops are golden brown.

****The recipe made 62 clams. One was a tester clam. Depending on the size of your clam shells the amount you yield will vary.****