Cut 3 slices of bacon into small pieces and cube 5 tablespoons of butter. Finely chop 1/2 medium bell pepper, and mince 3 cloves of garlic and 3 tablespoons of flat-leaf Italian parsley. Set the clams aside and allow them to cool. Move the oven rack to the second highest level and keep the oven on. Preheat your oven to 425f and cook the clams in the oven until they partially open (just a few minutes).

Clean and purge 2 dozen Littleneck clams.

How to make itĮach number corresponds to the numbered written steps below. The bacon and bell pepper add such great flavor to the clams and the garlicky breadcrumbs just seal the deal.Ĭlams casino are great to serve around the holidays, including Christmas Eve’s Feast of the seven fishes when a variety of other seafood recipes are also served. 'It's a genuine tribute to Frank,' Schoenegger adds.They’re versatile and can be made in so many different ways like tossed with pasta in linguine alla vongole, or baked in clams oreganata.īut clams casino is a dish that even those who don’t love clams will enjoy!

'We prepare them exactly as he liked and balance that with a selection of seasonal Italian cuisine, including fresh pastas and fish.'įinally, don't forget dessert: The Cappello, a dark-chocolate mousse with Jack Daniel's-laced panna cotta, is shaped like Sinatra's famed fedora. 'Frank loved the classics of good Italian food - he preferred a good veal Milanese with a little salad on the side, while veal parmigiana and spaghetti with clams were also his go-to dishes,' Schoenegger notes.

'His guests were always interesting, and among them one night was Sinatra,' recalls the chef, who soon found himself preparing Frank's favorites at the legendary singer's own dinner parties.įast-forward three decades, and many of those same dishes are incredibly popular at Encore’s Sinatra. While serving as executive chef of San Domenico, an Italian restaurant on New York’s Central Park South, Schoenegger regularly cooked for Luciano Pavarotti, who resided in the adjacent building. Theo Schoenegger is a talented, Michelin-rated chef, but here’s the ultimate reason he's the perfect person to oversee the kitchen at Sinatra: He cooked for Ol' Blue Eyes himself.

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