Linguica Stuffed Quahogs

If you haven't figured it out yet that I love my Seafood with a little bit of Portuguese sausage then this recipe is here to convince you. Now this isn't very original, as you can find many recipes like this with Chorizo but I enjoy the spice blend and flavor from Linguica. I didn't realize this until later on in life but I guess Linguica isn't that well known across all states. If you can find it though, get it!

I've loved Stuffed Quahogs since I was little. Even though I'm from Vermont and hours from the closest ocean, my dad used to buy them in the frozen section of the grocery store. For frozen and not fresh, they're pretty good. They definitely lack clams though and seem to be more stuffing then anything but they got me on the right track to loving seafood. 

Fast forward to me moving to Massachusetts, I'm always ordering them or making them so I of course had to get a clamming license. These delicious little guys were actually a gift from a friend but we did lots of clamming over the summer and fall.

My kids think it's a blast and for good reason, they get so excited when they find one and get to measure it! I think they also enjoy seeing where our food comes from and they seem to give me less of a hard time when they are a part of the process. 

Moral of the story; if you live near the ocean, I highly recommend getting a license if you like clams.

Enough talking, Let's get to cooking! You will need; 8 Large clean quahogs, 2 links of Linguica, minced, 1 C water, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 white cooking wine, 4 cloves minced garlic, 3 tbs olive oil, 4 tbs butter, 1 yellow minced onion, 1/3 C minced celery, 2 tbs Parsley, 4 C White Bread, chopped.

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Start by cleaning your clams with the scrubby side of a sponge that you don't plan to use again. This is especially important if they are fresh. They are usually covered in algae and even harmful bacteria. 

Once clean add water to a large stock pot, then add wine and bay leaf then bring to a boil. Carefully add the quahogs in and let cook until quahogs open, this can take about 10 minutes depending how large they are. I actually had a couple big ones that took 15 minutes! 

Remove the quahogs carefully with tongs and set aside to cool. Save the clam water you cooked them in. Once cool enough to touch, shuck the meat with a fork then dice the meat and set aside in a medium bowl. Discard any clams that don't open.

In a large pan, heat oil and butter on medium heat, saute' the garlic, onions and celery. Let cook for 3 minutes then add your Linguica and cook for 1 more minute. Remove from heat.

Add vegetables and Linguica to your large bowl with the chopped clams, chopped bread and reserved clam juice a little at a time while trying to avoid any sediment at the bottom, usually about a cup is needed. Stir until well blended. More water may be needed depending on the bread.

I like to let the mixture sit for a few minutes to let the bread soak in as much juices as possible. Keep mixing until you can make clumps can be formed. 

Pull apart the Quahog shells and place the halves on a baking sheet, divide the the mixture evenly into each shell. You will likely only need half of the shell halves depending on how much you put in each one, I like to really over stuff mine.
Bake for 25 minutes then top with fresh parsley and a side of lemon wedge. 

Psst.. That's fresh Rosemary Focaccia Bread in the background. I'll link that blog here when it's done.

Ingredients:

• 8 Large clean quahogs
• 2 links of Linguica, minced
• 1 C water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 white cooking wine
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 4 tbs butter
• 1/2 C minced onion
• 1/3 C minced celery
• 2 tbs Parsley
• 4 C White Bread, chopped

Directions

1. In a large pot add water, wine and bay leaf then bring to a boil
2. Preheat Oven to 375
3. Carefully add the quahogs in and let cook until quahogs open. 
4. Reserve clam water from the pot. Remove quahogs and shuck the meat, dice the meat and set aside in a medium bowl. Discard any clams that don't open.
5. In a large pan, heat oil and butter on medium heat, saute' the garlic, onions and celery. Let cook for 3 minutes.  Remove from heat.
6. Add vegetables and Linguica to your large bowl with the chopped clams then add your chopped bread and reserved clam juice a little at a time, usually about a cup is needed. Stir until well blended. More water may be needed depending on the type of stuffing used. 
7. Pull apart the Quahog shells and place on a baking sheet, divide the the mixture evenly into each shell.
8. Bake for 25 minutes.
9. Top with fresh parsley and a side of lemon wedge.  Enjoy!

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