Summer Backyard Clambake

Tonight I thought of all my New England friends.

We did a California clambake and I think my Northeastern peeps would’ve been proud.

I made a special trip to Whole Foods this afternoon for some gorgeous little necks. Albertson’s came through with beautiful colossal shrimp. Throw those in a roasting pan with some andouille, baby potatoes, lemon slices, thyme, Old Bay, smashed garlic cloves, mini corn on the cobs and chicken stock and….oh my goodness!

I mixed up some cocktail sauce with some wasabi and sliced some french bread for sopping up the broth. We were in hog heaven.

If you’ve never done a clambake you need to try this. All done on the grill.

Perfection on a platter.

You could also get all super fancy and get some lobster tails, mussels or crabs.

Here is the aftermath:

Needless to say I did not make it to the gym or bother to calculate the point damage on this meal.

Totally worth it, though.

Again, here is the recipe we followed. We basically cut it in half and used some chicken stock in place of the water. Next time I will try low sodium stock. Between the clams, Old Bay and chicken stock, it may have been a touch on the salty side.

Wishing we could get back to Boston for a visit, but until then, we’ll make this meal and remember all the great times in New England with special friends.

XOXO