“Eat what makes you happy!”
Linguine Asiago alle Vongole
I know, here's another Italian Clam Pasta (i.e. Pasta Alle Vongole) recipe. But I love love pasta, I love Italian grated cheese and I love clams ... so there! I came across this recipe when I was searching for recipes using Asiago cheese which is one of my favorite Parmesan substitutes next to Grana Padano (so my blog post about Parmesan substitutes). The original recipe that inspired this one came from Amanda Rettke at iamhomesteader.com Although I do occasionally cook pasta sides sans meat, I really prefer some kind of meat in the dish. So, I took Amanda's recipe and changed the type of pasta noodles, the type of salt, and most importantly, I added whole baby clams to the mix!
The first time I prepared this recipe I realized that a 'drained' 10 oz. can of whole baby clams actually amounted to just less than 3 or 4 oz. of edible clam meat after the juice was drained. So, I upped the ingredients to two 10 oz. cans of whole baby clams which provides approx. 6 oz. of edible clam meat after the juice is drained.
Last, I upped the cooking time a bit to enable the seasonings/milk mixture to thicken.
I hope you'll give this recipe a try ... it is easy, quick and delicious!
Ingredients
Instructions
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Cook the linguine according to the package instructions.
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Drain linguine and return back to the pot. Reserve one cup of noodle water. Set aside.
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Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat, about 2 minutes. Over medium heat, add the garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Whisk in the Italian seasoning, salt, red pepper flakes and flour. Continue to whisk for 3 to 5 minutes until the sauce begins to turn light brown.
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While continuing to whisk, add the milk
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Add the grated Asiago cheese and the spinach leaves. Cover and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes until the spinach is wilted.
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Add the clams to the sauce mixture and let them simmer for 1 minute.
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Pour the sauce over the cooked linguine and stir to combine. If desired, add fresh chopped parsley and more grated asiago cheese for serving.
Serving Size 1 1/4 cups
Servings 4
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories 254kcal
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 12g19%
- Saturated Fat 7g35%
- Cholesterol 69mg23%
- Sodium 922mg39%
- Potassium 820mg24%
- Total Carbohydrate 25g9%
- Dietary Fiber 5g20%
- Sugars 5g
- Protein 14g29%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Note
Why Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt ... In each pinch of Diamond Crystal, there's more space between the grains of salt (because the crystals don't sit as snug against each other)—which makes it, writes Santopietro, lighter and less salty than Morton's (and fine sea salt or table salt)—"and therefore more forgiving in the kitchen." You're less likely to over-salt if you use Diamond Crystal. Switch from Diamond Crystal to Morton's without making adjustments and your food might burn a hole through your tongue. Ina Garten has called the salt “perfect.” It’s used in recipe testing at America’s Test Kitchen and Bon Appétit.
About the clams ... Be sure to purchase "whole" baby clams and not "chopped" clams because the whole ones are the perfect size and the chopped ones are too small. It is important to drain the can(s) of clams; if not, the dish would be too watery. Be sure to save the drained liquid in an air-tight container and refrigerate it because you will need it when you re-heat the recipe left-overs. I highly recommend Bumble Bee brand Whole Baby Clams because, not only do they taste good, they have much fewer calories per serving as well as being lower in sodium content.
