A Lenten Dinner Party...of sorts

Last night our great friends Randy and Rhonda came to say goodbye. They are moving closer to their kids in Arizona. They got a great deal on a house and are in the process of packing up. They wanted to go out but being lent and limited in what we can eat plus my diabetes and pasta are enemies I offered to cook. Not many folks will turn down a meal at our house and they graciously accepted. Originally Randy wanted to head out to Spaghetti Works for their red clam sauce but I use a high fiber low calories pasta so I made the sauce here instead. As a matter of fact, I made 3 sauces as Rhonda does not eat anything from the sea and Brenda preferred white clam sauce rather than red.

A nice fresh French loaf and cop cat Olive Garden salad rounded out the menu with a Lenten chocolate cake for dessert.

For the sauce I used the 4 ingredient method

1 28 ounce can of San Marzano peeled tomatoes
1 small onion peeled and halved
1 t salt or more as needed
4 tbls butter or margarine.

Heat all the ingredients in a sauce pan the simmer for 45 minutes. Break up the tomatoes as it’s cooking. Discard the onion. One basic red sauce that is surprisingly fresh tasting and delicious.

For the White Clam Sauce

1 can of Bumblebee Baby Clams, drained juice reserved
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 shallot chopped
2 tbls olive oil
1/2 c white wine
3 tbls butter or margarine

In a medium skillet heat the olive oil and then add the garlic and shallot. Sauté gently to avoid burning the garlic then add the clams. Heat through, add the wine the the clam juice. (At this point I divided the red sauce in half and added 1/3 of the clams to the red sauce.)
Bring the white sauce to a low boil and add the butter, one pat at a time and whisking to incorporate before adding the next. Sauce should thicken and become glossy. Add a handful of parsley.