Stuffed Clams with Linguiça and Arugula

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup clam juice
• 24 littleneck clams, scrubbed
• 1 (3-ounce) Portuguese roll or piece of bread (such as baguette or crusty bread), torn into chunks
• 2 ounces linguiça, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 0.25 cup unsalted butter
• 1 small yellow onion (about 5 ounces), very finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 medium celery stalk, very finely chopped (about 3 tablepoons)
• 1 medium jalapeño chile, seeded and minced (about 2 tablespoons)
• 0.333 cup very finely chopped arugula (about 1 1/4 ounces)
• 0.5 teaspoon kosher salt
• 0.25 teaspoon black pepper
• Lemon wedges, for serving

Steps

1. Combine wine and clam juice in a large saucepan; bring to a boil over high. Add clams; cover and cook until clams begin to open, 5 to 7 minutes. Uncover; using tongs, transfer clams to a large rimmed baking sheet. Let cool 5 minutes. Discard any clams that did not open. Pour cooking liquid through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl.
2. Working over reserved cooking liquid to catch the juices, remove and discard top shells from clams. Remove clams from bottom shells. Transfer clams to a cutting board, and finely chop. Set aside. Set reserved cooking liquid aside. Wipe baking sheet clean. Arrange bottom shells on cleaned baking sheet. Set aside.
3. Place bread chunks in a food processor; pulse until coarse breadcrumbs form, 7 to 9 pulses. Transfer breadcrumbs to a large bowl. Add linguiça to food processor; pulse until very finely chopped, 5 to 6 pulses. Set aside.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium. Add onion, celery, and jalapeño; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are just softened, about 5 minutes. Add chopped linguiça; cook, stirring occasionally, until fat is rendered, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in chopped clams, arugula, and 1/2 cup reserved clam cooking liquid; discard remaining cooking liquid. Remove from heat. Add linguiça mixture, salt, and black pepper to breadcrumbs in bowl; stir well to combine.
5. Lightly pack linguiça stuffing evenly into bottom clam shells on baking sheet; cover with aluminum foil. Bake in preheated oven until hot, about 20 minutes. Remove foil; continue baking until tops are very lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Serve stuffed clams alongside lemon wedges.