Pasta Vongole, Venise, Venise, Venise

Sometimes I wake up in the morning and I think, hum… lets cook Pasta Vongole for dinner!! I must have been dreaming all night long that I lived in a shell, deep on the Venice ocean floor Oui, oui I know I fell into a soup casserole when I was a baby and have never recovered since…. But I tell you, this extra simple recipe is a must-try and is easy to cook in few minutes. Besides, it makes a beautiful plate with pasta cooked al dente, holding in their twists and turns nice shells with a touch of red from the subtle tomatoes and refreshing chillies…

The most important thing is timing.

Ingredients
For four

500g spaghetti
200g cherry tomatoes
800g pipis (cockles) from sustainable sources (with their shells) scrubbed clean.
One red chilli, finely sliced
2 soup spoons of olive oil
250ml white wine
A small bouquet of flat parsley, finely sliced
2 or 3 cloves garlic peeled and crushed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring a big casserole of water to the boil (roughly 2-3L)
2. Add the pasta to the boiling water and put on the back burner to cook.
3. In a sauce pan, on medium heat, add the olive oil, the tomatoes chopped in two and the garlic. Let them cook for 3,5/4 minutes.
4. Add the wine, the pipis, the parsley, salt and pepper and crumble in the chilli.
5. Stir constantly.
6. Let it cook on medium/high heat until the pipis open and look happy.
7. Get rid of any clams that haven’t opened. This step is very important, as those which have not opened might be not fresh and should not be eaten.
8. By now the pasta should be cooked ; drain the water, put back the drained pasta to the pan and add the sauce.
   

Serve immediately with a little bit of grated cheese on the side and some fresh bread to mop up the sauce.

Enjoy !!!