Fideos with Clams and Saffron

This is the first recipe TK and I ever made from the Top Chef cookbook, and it still is a regular on our menu when we're looking for something romantic, charming and relatively easy (minus the general annoyance of having to clean clams). The basic premise of very slowly cooking garlic in oil then absorbing it into toasted pasta (almost risotto style) then adding cream and saffron is pretty unbeatable. And the presentation of the just-opened clams is elegant and fun. That being said, we had to make some adjustments to the recipe (more veggies, more clams, less pasta), and work a little bit on the technique of getting a bird's nest of toasted pasta into a dutch oven. As a result, I recommend using the largest dutch oven you have, even if you aren't serving that many. (This dish serves 4 to 6).

One whole teaspoon of saffron is a decadent amount of saffron, and that is the luxury ingredient of this dish. You can lighten that a bit. For instance, if you are using the pre-packaged individual servings of saffron, one capsule will do even though that usually isn't quite a teaspoon. Too much saffron can overwhelm a dish, so don't go wildly overboard, but this is also definitely not a three or four strands and that's it dish. It is the star of this show and deserves to be treated as such.

 

Fideos with Clams and Saffron

Ingredients

3/4 pound fideos or capellini pasta

2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled
Salt
1 1/4 cup small cauliflower florets
1 1/4 cup small broccoli florets
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
10 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
1/2 cup white wine or seafood stock
1 1/2 pound fresh medium clams, cleaned
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Instructions Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Break the fideos into 3-inch pieces. Arrange the pieces in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Place in the oven and bake until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. This exercise will also provide you with an awesome test of "where is my oven the hottest". Meanwhile, clean the clams thoroughly of any grit. In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, saffron, and salt to taste and place over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, whisking and watching the pot so the cream doesn’t boil over. Remove from the heat, stir in the cauliflower and broccoli, and set aside. Preheat the broiler.  In a large dutch oven, heat the oil and garlic over low heat, stirring, until the garlic begins to soften and turn golden, about 15 minutes. Don't rush it and burn the garlic. Break the garlic up with the back of a wooden spoon. Add the clams, fideos, and then wine. The fideos will make a bit of a mess and may not all fit immediately into the pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Close the lid and shake the pot to combine. Increase the heat to medium-high and cover the pan. Cook for about 4 minutes, shaking the pan, until the clams have JUST opened. Discard any unopened clams. Stir in the cauliflower and cream mixture and remove from the heat. Divide the clam and pasta mixture among 4 ovenproof dishes. Place the dishes in the oven and broil until golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Garnish with the chopped parsley and serve immediately.