New Year’s Eve was a quiet night for us, although we did stay up till midnight this year. Every New Years, I think back to the first time Lisa and I shared that holiday. It was going to be our first Christmas together and since my restaurant was closed for the winter and she was off for the holidays we decided it would be the perfect time for a trip together. I had spent the past few years in Florida with friends for the Holidays and since we both enjoyed Disney World, we thought it would be a great place to spend New Years Eve.
What we found were escalated room rates and the highest flight rates we had ever seen….sigh, I mean we were flying from Pomona to Orlando on Spirit, a small airline…..they wanted $400 for a flight I usually paid $160 for. As I sat with my travel agent, I’m sure he could sense my disappointment and frustration, because he turned to me and asked if we had to go to Florida? I told him no, it was just a thought, and asked where else we could fly for $400? He told me he would check around and give me a call. About an hour later he called and asked if I would like to go to Paris? Now is that really a question that you have to think about, I mean it was Paris! I tried my best to remain calm, and called Lisa at school to ask her if she would like to go to Paris….lol, you can imagine her response.
It was an incredible trip, although very tiring, we arrived in Paris the day after Christmas and spent the week exploring and eating our way through my favorite city, the city of lights….sigh, how I do love Paris! So we spent our first New Years Eve together in Paris, the most romantic city on earth, now I would like to tell you that we celebrated the new year in shadow of the Eiffel Tower, but the truth was that jet lag still had us in its grip and we were in bed by 10! Now the fireworks did wake us up at Midnight as we heard the celebration in the streets, the sounds of the new year echoing though our room. It may not have been picture perfect, but we were in Paris and that’s where we shared our first New Years Eve Kiss, and that my friends is something I will always remember.
So when I say we stayed at home and just spent a quiet evening, it doesn’t mean we didn’t have a good dinner. We did go out for Christmas Eve, and enjoyed an incredible meal at Sapori in Collingswood, but instead of going out again on New Years Eve I decided to make something at home. When I want to make something special for dinner, my mind normally goes into restaurant mode, to dishes I served time and time again. There really isn’t any secret formula to the dishes, it’s just a matter of getting the ingredients you need in the quantities you need them in. Making delicious restaurant style meals at home is really easier than you think, and dishes like a seafood combination are not only perfect for that intimate dinner for two, but also for a party of eight, It’s all in the timing!
Ingredients can vary depending upon whats available and what you like, but a standard seafood combo, usually has, Flounder, scallops, shrimp, and some form of crabmeat, other than that what ever else you like can be an added bonus. In my restaurant days, we stuffed the shrimp with crab imperial, or sometimes the dinner would include a small lobster tail and that would be stuffed with crab imperial. Of course the lobster version commanded a higher price! In my restaurant days Clams Casino were king and I made one of the best clams casino you’ll ever have, and there were always a few on any seafood combo I served, so for my New Years Eve dinner I decided to whip up a small batch for Lisa and I to enjoy! They were better than I remembered and besides the two on our plate we finished the rest of the dozen I had made.
I don’t know when clams casino lost their popularity, and it’s a rare occasion to find them on a menu. For those of you that have never had them, you really need to make them. The next time you friends or family over make two dozen and watch them disappear, I promise you they will be the hit of the evening! If your pressed for time, you can make the clams up ahead of time, they store well and can even be frozen. I’ll let you in on a little secret to opening clams easily too! If your stuffing clams, throw them in the freezer for about an hour, rinse them under cool water and just slip a knife in and they open like magic! Now this only works for stuffing clams, please don’t use this method for clams on the half shell! While were talking about clams, I want to mention that you need to be sure your source is reliable, small bags of clams will always have a tag on them, telling you when and where they came from, its the law! This is true for mussels too. If your buying clams or mussels by the dozen and they’re on display, you can ask to see the tag that came off the original container. Only buy shellfish from reliable sources you trust!
That’s another thing I love about Wegman’s, they tell you where all of the seafood came from. They should also tell you if the seafood is wild caught or farmed, be aware of what your buying! Wild caught is always the preferred seafood to purchase, and if your buying farmed seafood, make sure its from the US. Stay away from seafood farmed in Asia, and India. While they may have excellent fresh seafood, there farming techniques and sanitation don’t always come up to our standards, so it’s better not to take the chance. If your supplier doesn’t know where it came from don’t buy it! The US has become a great source for farmed raised seafood, with Branzino, Orata , little neck clams, and mussels as well as many other varieties that can now be found all year long.
My seafood combo was very basic with 3 shrimp , 4 scallops, a small piece of flounder with some jumbo lump crabmeat, a half a dozen mussels, and of course my clams casino. I placed all my seafood (except the crabmeat and clams casino) in a baking dish with a little water in the dish, and spooned a little melted butter over the seafood and a sprinkle of old bay, place in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. I kept the casino in a separate dish because they needed a few minutes under the broiler, after there time in the oven. The crab meat I gently sauteed in a little melted butter and topped the flounder with the crab meat when I was ready to serve dinner. Make your favorites sides, a small salad, and you’ve just saved yourself about 65% of what the meal would have cost you if you had gone out to dinner.
- 24 Top neck clams-cleaned
- 2 sticks of Butter
- 8-10 slices of Bacon-thinly sliced
- 1 Large Red Bell Pepper- small dice
- 1 Large Spanish or Va dahlia Onion-small dice
- ½ cup grated Romano Cheese
- 1 Teaspoon Oregano
- ½ Teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Tablespoons fresh Italian Parsley finely chopped (optional)
- Chop the onion, and bell pepper into a small dice
- Slice the bacon slices about ⅛ of an inch thick.
- place the butter, bacon, peppers, and onions into a medium sauce pan and cook on low heat for about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the grated Romano, black pepper, Oregano (and always use dry, fresh oregano does not work as well) and the chopped parsley. Mix well.
- Place into the refrigerator and stir it occasionally so all the ingredients stay well blended, until the butter has firmed back up. This will take at least 2 hours, so give yourself time.*
- Take the clams out of the freezer, and rinse them in a bowl with running water for about 5 minutes.
- Open your clams with the blade of a knife, just be careful!
- Take a spoonful of the prepared Casino mix and make a nice mound of it on top of the clam, pressing it into the clam firmly with your hand. Repeat this process until all of the clams are stuffed.
- Now place your clams in a casserole, there will be butter run off, so we don’t want that spilling into your oven.
- Place the clams into a 375 degree oven for about 15 minutes, then finish for about 5 minutes under your broiler or until the bacon and tops begin to get nicely browned.
Making delicious meals like this seafood combination not only save you money but allow you to make exactly what you like, you don’t have to ask your server if the chef would substitute something for you, and of course there won’t be any extra charge for giving you what you want!! Imagine that!
Thanks for stopping by, I hope everyone’s holidays were happy and restful, and that 2012 proves to be a good year for all of us!
Happy New Year my friends!
sea food & sinfull holidays
yumm…
xoxo
Happy New Year! I wish you an amazing, healthy, full of love and happy moments 2012!
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WoW,,,,everything on the plate sound really delicious,I love seafood this is great combination seafood recipe,love it,happy new year to you chef Dennis
This is just my kind of meal! Love it Dennis!
Great Paris story. Your seafood dishes always look so good and I love clams casino but haven’t had them in many years. My folks lived in South Jersey in the 60′s and good fresh clams were a regular on the menu and Dad could make pretty good casinos. After seeing yours, I’m going in search of clams.
Aw, what sweet memories, Dennis! And such a sweet plate of deliciousness. Your seafood dishes are always extraordinary…and this is no exception!
Clams casino remain a favorite of mine. Been a while since I’ve had them and never have I made them. (For some reason, I have these cute little shells sitting up on the top shelf of my pantry. Maybe they want to get down!) Wonderful story, too!
This seafood combination is something my family will love, especially the clams casino. So simple to make too. Thanks for the great recipe! I sometimes buy fresh clams and mussels from Costco. I thought they were usually fresh, but never checked the labels. I will now.
Just stopped by to say Happy New Year!
Seeing recipes and photos like this make me wish we were back living on the Jersey Shore, where fresh seafood (especially clams and scallops) were always in abundance. Living in northeast Texas has its advantages — if you love catfish, or the frozen scrod from Wal Mart, which I don’t. Ah, I long for clams casino … or even clams and garlic butter.
Coming from Texas, I do believe that it would be the one thing I would sorely missed If I ever moved back to the Lone Star State, the fresh seafood abounds in this area, and I have certainly grown use to having it available and affordable!
Happy New year!
What an amazing memory of your first New Year’s together!
This looks like a great NYE dinner at home. We had seafood here too!
What a lovely memory you have to enjoy every year! This seafood platter makes my mouth simply water. I have saved this recipe to make for my husband. He’s the clam lover in the family. Have a wonderful new year!
Paris is always better than Disney. Well I’m assuming it is anyways, having never been to Paris. Clams are one of my very favorite foods, and your clams casino looks amazing. I’ve always seen and made it with bread crumbs. I never thought to do it without. Now if you had a recipe for Oysters Rockefeller my shellfish repertoire would be complete.
hi Deanna
I was taught a non traditional way of making oysters rockefeller that everyone has seemed to enjoy over the years. I simply make a light cream sauce and blend it with my seasoned sauteed spinach, topping the oyster with this combination and then after cooking, topping with a little holandaise sauce. Again not the traditional version but one that has gotten raves through the years!
Dennis
This looks absolutely amazing, such a great recipe! Happy New Year!
I loved your story, Chef Dennis! I’ve never been to Paris, but it’s on me and the Hubs list of places to go! This seafood platter looks wonderful!
What a wonderful memory! I would love to spend New Year Eve or really any day in Paris. I think it is the most perfect city in the world.
Simple killer recipe!! I love this alot, my fave seafood is mussels, so this is a perfect dish for me! I usually fry mussels with japanese soy n garlic… never tried with cheese, so i should give it a try
This looks amazing – I wish I wasn’t allergic to seafood! Next time you decide to do Disney – let me know! I maintain an annual pass and live a short drive away – I’d love to meet you & Mrs. Chef Dennis!
thanks Ann! I would love to come back down, its been so long since weve done any traveling, we are really due! I will certainly let you know when we can schedule some Mickey time!
What a great, romantic meal! My husband loves clams, so I’m sure he’d really like this one. I hope you had a Happy New Year (we’re old fuddy duddies, so we didn’t stay up to midnight!)
Congratulations on Top 9 and Happy New Year!
This looks amazing. There is just nothing better than fresh seafood. I agree that it’s incredibly important to know where your seafood comes from. I consult the Blue Ocean Institute – which keeps track of farming methods, endangered populations of wild caught species and mercury levels. It’s a great resource for making informed choices. http://www.blueocean.org/seafood/seafood-guide
Your story was beautiful! And the dinner…awesome!! I made a seafood dish also but not nearly as perfect looking as yours. And, Wegman’s really is so wonderful. I love just about everything about that store! Happy New Year!
Happy New Year Sheri! The only thing I don’t like about Wegmans is how much I spend each trip, I always find too many good things!
True, but I try to comfort myself with the fact that it’s all whole, good foods that I find there. It’s just worth it.
Everything looks great, my mouth is watering! Thank you for sharing and congrats on Top 9.
Thank you Jess!
Have you been back?! Someday I’ll go back to Paris and take my husband with me. The next time I won’t squander the food opportunity on steak and french vanilla ice cream….I was two young the first few times to realize that the food that looked strange could actually be AMAZING.
yes I’ve been 3 times to my favorite city, but its been too many years since our last trip, I keep telling my wife when I retire I want to spend a month in Paris, everytime I’m there I discover something new.
Happy New Year!
Thank you so much for sharing your sweet New Year’s Eve story with us Dennis! Lisa is a lucky lucky gal =)
Especially with being served dinners like this!
Wow this looks amazing! I def have to try clams casino. Looks fantastic!
Chef Dennis…Happy New year !!! and congrats on Top 9. I enjoyed your romantic story in Paris with Lisa…a day to remember…those fireworks and your first new year eve’s kiss !
….before I got carried away..your seafood combination looks good and you have managed to make me drool away 
Have a great day Chef !
Come to say “Happy New Year 2012 to chef Dennis ” !!!…. and hope you will be the popular chef on foodbuzz forever, because you always to be top 9 …I love seafood like this but I have spicy chili sauce with seafood too ,it’s easy just have garlic ,thai red chili ,lime juice,fish sauce and some sugar.. that’s it….