Ingredients

1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
60 Manila clams (about 3 pounds), scrubbed clean in saltwater
1 medium radicchio, cut into 3⁄4-inch dice
1 1⁄2 pounds orecchiette
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Instructions

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add the orecchiette.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and the red-pepper flakes, and sauté them until the garlic turns golden. Add the clams and three quarters of the radicchio to the oil, plus a touch of the pasta cooking liquid.

When the pasta is three-quarters done, drain it, reserving the cooking liquid. Add the pasta, plus 1⁄4 cup of its water, to the pan, and sauté together, stirring occasionally, adding more liquid as required until the pasta is cooked through. The liquid allows the starches in the pasta to release and thicken the “sauce.” Remove from the heat, stir in the remaining radicchio, and sprinkle with parsley.

(Published 2003)