Beat The Butcher at the Beach Part 1

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Still, that's only the most basic form of shellfish preparation . . . and a little variety can be welcome from time to time (especially if you forage the beaches as often as I do). The following recipes from the book Stalking the Blue-Eyed Scallop by Euell Gibbons (available for $3.95 plus 95¢ shipping and handling from Mother's Bookshelf, P.O. Box 70, Hendersonville, North Carolina 28739) are reprinted here with the permission of the David McKay Co., Inc., and should satisfy the most discriminating epicureans:

CLAM CHOWDER

Cut 1 large onion and about 4 slices of bacon into small bits and fry them together until the onion is golden yellow and translucent. Then add 2 cups of diced potatoes, cover everything with water, and boll until the spuds are done. While the potatoes are still cooking steam 2 dozen clams (more or less, depending upon their size and how many you have) and-after steaming-grind their meat in a food chopper. This clam meat and broth from the steaming kettle are then added to the chowder. Immediately pour in a quart of milk, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate (I don't know why Gibbons used this seasoning, but he did . . . leave it out if you want to), and 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. While the mixture is heating (only to a simmer), blend 1 tablespoon of flour into 1/4 cup of milk, slowly add the solution to the chowder, and continue to stir until the soup slightly thickens. Try to avoid boiling the rich brew after the milk has been added, but do simmer it gently for 10 minutes after adding the thickening. Serve the steaming chowder (ambrosia!) with crackers on the side.

STUFFED MUSSELS

Scrub (with a stiff vegetable brush or its equivalent) and steam open 4 dozen mussels, remove their meat, and chop it into coarse bits. Then dice one medium-sized onion and saute it in butter until it turns a clear yellow. Add 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley, 1/4 teaspoon of poultry seasoning, and 1-1/2 cups of bread crumbs. Cook the mixture (stirring it constantly) for about 2 minutes before removing it from the heat.

After you've taken the pot off the fire, stir In the chopped mussels and enough of the broth from the steaming kettle to dampen the bread crumbs slightly. And—finally—mix everything together, fill 2 dozen of the empty half-shells with the mixture, arrange the shells on a cookie sheet, and put them in the broiler until the tops of the stuffing have lightly browned. Then serve up the stuffed mussels while they're still sizzling!

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