Cozze e vongole alla poretta (poor man’s clams and mussels) A simple, yet tasty appetizer or aperitif.

Mussels and clams are the “queens” of the Adriatic Sea. They can never be missed on the table, either as an appetizer or an aperitif, better if served with a glass of good local white wine on the beach.  The recipe is called “poretta”, which means “poor man’s”, because they are cooked only with some herbs.

Clean the mussels by washing them thoroughly under running water. Scrub the outside of the shell to remove the encrustations and pull off the hairy ‘beard’ that sticks out from the shell with a knife blade. Wash the clams thoroughly under running water. Finely chop the parsley together with peeled garlic. Place the mix, oil, mussels and clams in a large casserole. Put them over high heat, cover and wait until they open, mixing every now and then. It generally takes 5-7 minutes. At the end, add a generous amount of pepper. Serve with lemon slices.