Razor Clams and Celeriac Napoleon

By ALICJA

You can cubstitute regular clam strips for the razor clams.

Ingredients

• 36 razor clams
• 2 cups fish stock,vegetable stock,or salted water
• a squeeze of lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 head celeriac,peeled,sliced very thin,and cut into 2-inch x 2 inch squares(about 16 pieces)
• 2 cups Vin Blanc Sauce(see note below)
• 6 chives,finely chopped.
• Vin Blanc Sauce
• This is exactly the same recipe as the Dill Cream Sauce but the dill is kept out of the recipe and an additional 2 tbsp of butter is whisked in at the end of cooking.

Preparation

Step 1

With a sharp knife,open the clams.The desirable edible portion of the clam is the opaque white part about 1-2 inch long-similar to a clam strip in a regular clam.Remove the strips and guts from the clams and discard the guts.Rinse the razor clam strips thoroughly and reserve.
Combine the stock or salted water,lemon juice,and salt in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat.Add the squares of celeriac.Reduce the heat to low and poach the celeriac for about 5 min.or until it is tender,but not falling apart.Drain,and reserve warm.
Place the Vin Blanc Sauce in a pot and warm over medium heat.Add the clam strips and poach the clams in the sauce until they are just cooked through,about 3 min.Stir in the chives.
On a serving plate,place a warm square of celeriac.Top with 3 clam strips and some sauce.Repeat twice more,then top with a final sheet of celeriac.Repeat with the remaining servings.Finish by drizzling some sauce over the top.Serve immediately.