Clams & Clam-related Foodstuffs

On Sunday I went down to Rhode Island to attend my uncle's clamboil. This is a traditional meal for family gatherings consisting of clams, hot dogs, sausages, potatoes, and onions tossed into a pot, boiled for an hour and simmered for another hour. The veggies get soft and delicious, and everything absorbs the clam broth flavor. Corn on the cob and brown bread (a sort of molasses bread) accompany the boiled foods. Bowls of melted butter await the dunking of clams.

Now it has been a long, long time since I've eaten steamers (technically "boilers" I suppose). I love clams - fried, chopped up in chowder, the occasional raw cherrystone - but I haven't had them in this style in some time. I ate roughly 200 of them. Clam after clam - head, body, bellies and all (save that nasty part covering the head) swam in butter and made its way to my mouth. By the time I was done there was a veritable midden sitting on my second plate. Unbelievable. Yet further proof that butter is the key to better living.

Also, as a sidenote: Sam Adams Octoberfest is out and about, and pleased the palates of many an imbiber on Sunday. I converted my Dad and half my extended family to the virtues of the O-fest.