Clams on the Grill

Clams on the brain. I have had clams on the brain for a couple of weeks now and I couldn't figure out why until I just noticed a bowl of steamed clams staring back at me from the cover of the latest edition of La Cucina Italiana. That magazine, which I haven't had have time to read, is sitting on top of a stack of other culinary magazines that likewise haven't been read and nor will they, more than likely ending up in the recycle bin, unappreciated, all for want of time. But those clams have been sending me subliminal signals for a couple weeks now I suppose, sitting there atop the pile on the chair next to my desk. And so to calm the visions of clams dancing around in my brain, I finally ordered a bag from the seafood company.

When the first squash of the year arrived on Friday, I knew I wanted to eat them and the clams too, so I devised a very simple dish cooked all on the grill outside to keep the kitchen cool. Simplicity is always good on my day off.

All Prepped and Waiting for the Grill to Warm

While prepping this very first squash of the year and the other things for the grill, I also quartered a pint of local cherry tomatoes and put them in a large bowl with some extra virgin olive oil and two huge handsful of herbs from the garden: basil, purple basil, fennel fronds, garlic chives, and rosemary.

Clams, Zucchini, Kuta and Yellow Squash, Fennel, Torpedo Onion, Garlic, Chorizo

Clams roast very well on the top shelf of the grill while the rest of dinner is cooking on the grates down below.

Ready for Assembly

As each item cooked, I removed it from the grill. Once all was cooked, I chopped the chorizo and vegetables, making sure to remove the cores from the fennel, and mixed the vegetables with the tomato-herb mixture and the clams.

Grilled Clams and Vegetables