Celebrity Diners Club
By Aaron Parsley
04/28/2013 at 02:35 PM EDT
Drew Barrymore loves to laugh and have a good time with family and friends. And one of the ways she’ll surely be doing that this spring and summer is with one of her favorite dishes, Clams Montecito, which she named for her home in the exclusive area of California.
“We cook a lot. We like to crack open a bottle of wine and then break out a bunch of yummy Manila clams,” she tells Eric Ripert of the dish, which they prepared together on Reserve Channel’s On the Table.
“What inspires my cooking is my daughter because I want to be able to throw things together for her in an effortless fashion,” Barrymore, 38, says of little Olive, who was born Sept. 26.
“I’m still at the stage when I’m cooking there’s like flames going off behind me and like alarms and I’m nervous and I’m not sexy,” she adds. “So I hope by the time that she’s ready to eat my food that I make it look [easy].”
In addition to her daughter with husband Will Kopelman, Barrymore’s other inspiration is her own brand of wine, Barrymore Pinot Grigio, which is described as “a straw yellow, full-bodied wine with hints of fresh apricot and lively citrus flavors” – and which she uses in her simple yet flavorful recipe. Give it a try:
Drew’s Clams Montecito:
• 1 Bag of Manila clams – the smaller the better
• 1 cup of pinot grigio
• 5 cloves of chopped garlic
• 1 large jalapeño (with a few seeds)
• 1 lemon
• 1 stick of butter
Melt butter and add garlic and jalapeño. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on medium heat in a saucepan and add wine. Cook down for about 5 minutes. Remove from stove and squeeze lemon into butter mixture. Turn on grill to medium high and spread clams on cookie sheet and spread around until they open. Warm butter up if need be, then toss onto clams and coat. Serve with warm baguette. Best served with pan-seared cod fish. Serves two.
