In many parts of the Northeast, summer comes to an end with the passing of Labor Day. In Greenport, however, we hang on to summer far into September with the Maritime Festival. This festival brings visitors from all over the state of New York, as well as New England, across the Long Island Sound via the Cross Sound Ferry. A mermaid parade, live music, snapper fishing competition, oyster shucking, arts and crafts, food court, and Maritime exhibits honor the Maritime history of a Village born out of a thriving whaling industry and rum running.
Not only is it a perfect family weekend activity, but it’s also a fund raiser for the East End Seaport Museum and Maritime Foundation, which supports the restoration of the Long Beach Bar “BUG” Lighthouse. The entire festival is an homage to the seaport heritage and agricultural innovations of the North Fork.
Here at Cuvee at the Greenporter Hotel, we are celebrating the Maritime Festival with our Maritime Bites menu and our Mojito bar, featuring signature Lavender Bay Mojito, made with wild blueberries and lavender grown right on our property. Part of the menu includes our Stuffed Hallock’s Bay Clams Gratinee–baked with fresh garden herbs grown right in our chef’s kitchen garden, this dish is the perfect savory seafood bite for celebrating the last of summer. We hope you will try this at home with your own fresh local clams.
Makes 1 dozen quahog-sized clams.
Ingredients:
2 cups homemade “breadcrumbs”, (I recommend toasting and cubing a French baguette.)
2 to 3 cups clam broth
2 cups chopped raw Orient Bay clams, (preferably as fresh as you can get–open them yourself and save the shells!)
1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tbsp. dried oregano or 2 tbsp. fresh oregano
1/8 cup parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
Sauté the chopped red pepper, celery, and onion in a bit of extra virgin olive oil. Be careful not to overcook the vegetables–they should still have a bit of crunch to them. Put to the side.
In a large bowl, add the clam broth to the chopped bread, and crumble with your hands. Continue adding clam brother as needed, until the mixture reaches a thick cake batter consistency. Add the chopped clams, the sautéed vegetables, and the seasonings, and mix again. Spoon the mixture into the empty clam shells, and bake for 20 minutes.
Enjoy with a glass of Kontokosta Wineries Orient Chardonnay for the ideal late summer experience.
