1 pound dry Italian linguine or spaghetti
4 garlic cloves, peeled, thinly sliced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cans whole baby clams, drained, juice reserved
shot dry white vermouth
1 tsp dried tarragon leaves (or 1 Tbsp fresh)
pinch of red chili pepper flakes
chopped fresh Italian parsley, scallions, or both
black pepper
Heat a large serving bowl and deep, rimmed dinner plates in a warm oven.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta. You can make the sauce while the noodles cook – 10 minutes work.
Put the sliced garlic and olive oil into a saucepan and heat until the garlic turns a light toasty brown. Add the clam juice (be careful, it will splutter), the vermouth, tarragon and a dash of pepper flakes. Boil mixture vigorously to reduce liquid slightly, blend flavors and incorporate the oil.
Shortly before the pasta is cooked – al dente, of course – add the clams to the boiling sauce mixture and bring back to a boil. The idea is to heat the clams through but not cook them into rubberiness.
When the pasta is done, drain it quickly without rinsing, toss it with the hot sauce in the serving bowl, sprinkle a handful of chopped parsley or scallions or both over the top, give it a few generous turns of the pepper mill and serve family style in the warm plates.
Serves 4 to 6.
