Fettuccine with white clam sauce

The first time I ever saw this dish, I was on one of those lame no carb diets back in the early 2000s. The smell of it drove me insane! I have only had it maybe a dozen times since then, but I love it. Except when it's crunchy and you know you got some sand in there, but still. Here's my version, borrowed heavily from others:

Scrub up 16 clams. Saute two smashed garlic cloves in olive oil. Once it starts to brown, add in the clams along with ¾ cup white wine and ½ cup water. Boil and steam for ten minutes. When I saw them open up, it felt like they were happy and saying hello!

Pull out the clams and set aside, discarding any clams that didn’t open. That’s important, the closed ones are dead and will make you sick. Once the clams cool slightly, pull out the meat. Discard the shells unless you want to use a couple for garnish. Save the liquid.

Cook ½ lb linguini until just barely al dente. Add to the skillet the reserved liquid and clams, 1 tbs butter, 1 tbs chopped parsley and oregano, a little bit of lemon zest and juice. Once heated through, add in the pasta along with ¼ cup pasta water. Cook until it starts looking like the sauce is friends with the pasta.

Throw on some parm and grub!

This is the first dish I have ever made that the boyfriend didn't like. He said it tasted funny. To be fair, though, he told me earlier in the day he didn't like mussels and when asked if he liked clams, he said "in chowder." Which I also make awesomely. I thought it was pretty damn good, although I would probably add less water to the clams next time.