No. 137. Fried Clams.—Select good, plump clams, dry them on a towel, roll in cracker crumbs, dip in egg, again in crumbs, and fry in hot fat; lay a sheet of paper in a colander and put the clams on this as fast as taken up; serve them on a napkin on a hot platter. The paper will prevent them from being greasy when sent to the table.
No. 138. Scalloped Clams.—For this prepare 25 clams, one-half pint cracker crumbs, one-half cup warm milk, one-fourth cup of clam liquor, two beaten eggs, one heaping teaspoonful melted butter, salt and pepper, 12 clam shells; season the clams highly; mix in another dish crackers moistened first with milk, then with the clam liquor; add eggs and melted butter, and the clams chopped; fill each clam shell heaping, sprinkle with bread crumbs and brown.
No. 139. Clam Fritters.—Either whole clams or chopped may be used. Prepare a good batter, stir in the clams, using considerable clam liquor in making the batter. If whole clams are used the large ones are the best, having one in each fritter; when the chopped clams are used the fritters may be made any size to suit. Drain and serve on a napkin. Parboil the clams before opening.
No. 140. Soft Clams Stewed.—Soft clams, so called, are merely the soft parts used without any of the hard parts (there are no other soft clams.) To stew them put the soft parts, raw, into saucepan with a little butter, simmer a few minutes and add boiling cream, with half as much clam water, season with salt and cayenne, add a little cracker dust, simmer three minutes longer and serve. As the clam water is always used to increase the clam flavor, more or less may be used to suit the taste.
No. 141. Quahogs or Round Clams.—These require very much more cooking than the long clam. Quahog shells, as well as those of the sea clam, are very useful for all kinds of shell fish scallops and it is a good plan to keep them on hand for this purpose.
No. 142. Quahogs Raw.—These are highly esteemed by some people, the medium size, or even quite small ones, being preferable; they should be served on the half shell, with vinegar, or lemon juice and pepper, or with Worcestershire sauce.
No. 143. Quahog Cocktail.—This is in great favor at some of the New York cafés, though it is usually called a “clam cocktail.” Take six of the tiniest quahogs obtainable and put them in a glass with a tablespoon of the clam liquor, add a speck of cayenne, a saltspoon of ground celery, a teaspoon of tomato catsup, a teaspoon of vinegar and one of Worcestershire sauce. Stir thoroughly with a fork and eat one by one. When the clams are gone, drink the remaining contents of the glass. Those who know, say this is delicious beyond comparison.
No. 144. Quahogs a la Provincetown.—If you want to eat clams of any kind served to perfection go to Cape Cod. Many people dislike the quahog because they cannot cook it tender, but they serve up a quahog stew in Provincetown with the quahogs as tender as a chicken. The quahogs are opened raw, and with their liquor and some water besides, are put on to cook immediately after breakfast and at noontime they are tender enough for anybody. After coming to a boil they should merely simmer until half an hour before serving, when sliced potatoes are added and they are allowed to cook faster until these are done. No more liquid should be used than just enough to keep the stew from sticking; the only seasoning used is pepper. Ten minutes before taking up cover the top of the stew with buttered crackers split in two. Pour the entire contents of kettle on to a platter and serve. The long clam is also very good stewed in this way, but the clams do not need to stew more than half an hour before the potatoes are put in. Try it and be convinced.
No. 145. Quahog Chowder.—This is made the same as the clam chowder, only the quahogs must be chopped very fine, and must be put in at the same time the potatoes are put in. Quahogs may also be cooked in any way that the long clam is cooked, remembering that they must either be chopped very fine, or be allowed more time in cooking.
No. 146. Mussel Chowder.—The mussels that are found so plenty on some of our beaches make a very nice chowder. Select those that are fresh always, and these can be easily distinguished by the shells being tightly closed; if the shells are open and remain so the mussel is not fit to eat. Parboil them in the shell, then open and remove the black, mossy substance, the rest is eatable. Cook the same as the long clam, they are very tender and require but little cooking.