Fast + Fabulous: Clams with Fennel + White Bean Sauce with Sancerre
"By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea!" ~ Harold Atteridge + Harry Carroll, 1914
Summer is such a source of culinary inspiration, as are the salty, sun-soaked days of childhood memories by the sea. So when I get the chance during an especially busy Summer season to spend some time in my kitchen, I love to channel some of my favorite seasonally-inspired meals + this recipe for Clams with Fennel + White Bean Sauce is the perfect Summer-inspired dish that’s both rustic and elegant, perfect for a breezy al fresco dinner or a cozy coastal night in.
Growing up by the beach, seafood was a staple of our Summer table, often the result of my dad’s latest deep sea fishing adventure. He was happiest with a cooler full of the day’s catch and a cold Miller High Life in hand, and nothing made him smile more than a bowl of steamed clams—simple, briny and satisfying.
This dish channels that memory while elevating it just a touch, blending tender clams with the delicate sweetness of fennel and the heartiness of creamy white beans.
This one pot meal is not only flavorful and healthy, it also doesn’t require you to crank up the oven or dirty a lot of pots and pans. And I especially love featuring fabulous food and wine combinations that can easily be throw together on a weeknight as well. There's no reason to slave for hours over a hot stove to conjure beautiful flavors. In fact, that's what my collection of Fast + Fabulous recipes is ALL about!
And now it's time for the flavah breakdown! In this recipe, the flavor of the sweet, juicy littleneck clams is accentuated by the bright, citrusy lemon juice and subtle, licorice-y flavor of the fennel. The creamy white beans impart nice texture and body to the dish, creating a sauce that'll luxuriously coat the back of your spoon, not to mention your palate. The lone sprig of rosemary adds a deep, fragrant base note which provides lovely depth of flavor and you simply must, I mean MUST serve this dish with generous slices of toasted, crusty French bread that have been rubbed with a garlic clove while still warm.
The fancy name for this garlic-rubbed toast is fettunta but let's just call it DELICIOUS!
Hungry yet?
To pair with Clams with Fennel + White Bean Sauce, a crisp, refreshing white wine would be best. I especially like Sancerre from France's Loire Valley which is crafted exclusively from the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It’s mineral-driven, citrusy and imparts brightness to the dish, while also balancing its creaminess.
Some of our favorite Sancerre producers include Daniel Chotard, Roger Neveu, Henri Bourgeois, Pascal Jolivet + Domaine Delaporte + if you’re a die hard California or New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc fan, either would also work nicely. Other bright, crisp whites such as Grüner Veltliner from Austria, Vermentino from Italy or a Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon blend from Bordeaux would also be fabulous.
Please see below for the full recipe and I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do. Now, what are your favorite flavors of Summer? I'd really love to know, I'm just nosy that way, so please let me know in the Comments section below.
"CLAMS WITH FENNEL + WHITE BEAN SAUCE"
Author: Stephanie Miskew | The Glamorous Gourmet
Serves: 2-4 servings
Pair this dish with a crisp, refreshing white wine like a Sancerre from France's Loire Valley!
INGREDIENTS
2 15-ounce cans of cannellini or Great Northern beans, rinsed
1/4 cup of good olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 medium fennel bulb
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 lemon
1/3 cup dry white wine like Sancerre or Sauvignon Blanc
1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh, flat leaf parsley
36 littleneck clams, scrubbed
6 slices of French bread, toasted + rubbed with a garlic clove
Kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Toss drained and rinsed white beans in a medium bowl with a drizzle of olive oil and season with Kosher salt and pepper. Set aside.
Remove fronds from fennel bulb and set aside. Remove any damage from the outside of the fennel bulb using a vegetable peeler and then cut bulb in half. Thinly slice one half of the fennel bulb and wrap the slices in a damp paper towel to prevent browning. Finely chop the remaining half of the fennel bulb.
Heat the 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add chopped fennel, sliced garlic and rosemary sprig and cook, stirring frequently, until fennel has softened, approx. 5 minutes.
Using a paring knife or vegetable peeler, remove two wide strips of zest from the lemon. Cut the lemon in half and remove the seeds.
Add the clams and lemon zest strips to the pot and squeeze in the juice from one half of the lemon. Cover the pot and give it a good shake back and forth to distribute the clams evenly. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until some of the clams have opened or begun to open. Transfer any open clams to a separate bowl and cover the pot once again and cook until the remaining clams open, approx 7-9 minutes. Then transfer the remainder of cooked clams to the bowl and discard any clams that did not open!
Add reserved, seasoned white beans and white wine to the pot and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce to simmer and return the cooked clams to pot along with half of the chopped parsley. Toss gently to combine and cover the pot and reheat clams for approx 5 minutes.
In a separate bowl, add the remaining chopped parsley and sliced fennel and squeeze the remaining lemon half over the mixture. Season fennel herb mixture with Kosher salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil and toss to combine.
Serve clams topped with the fennel herb mixture and plenty of toasted French bread rubbed with garlic to sop up the delicious sauce.