36 littleneck clams
5 tablespoons of fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
12 slices of bacon, cut into 1-inch squares
1 generous tablespoon of garlic, chopped fine
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1 cup of dry white wine
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Shuck the clams, or have your local seafood monger shuck them for you and save the juice. Either way, be sure to keep the juice, or liquor, as it’s sometimes called. Arrange the clams on the half shell side in a 13 x 11 inch baking dish. Strain the juice through cheesecloth or a very fine sieve into the baking dish. Sprinkle some of the parsley over the clams. Top each clam with a few small pieces of chopped bacon and garlic. Using about 3 tablespoons of butter, dot the top of each clam with a small piece of butter and place remaining butter around the clams in the baking dish. Add the wine and remaining parsley to the baking dish. Bake until the bacon is crisp and the pan juices are bubbling, about 12 minutes. Serve them right out of baking dish or arrange on a platter and pour juices around.
