Surf & Turf Sliders – Lambs and Clams

This post is bittersweet for me.  It’s been 4 months since I started the Lambs & Clams recipe contest in an attempt to win a pass to the Charleston Wine + Food Festival in March.  When I first agreed to enter the contest, March seemed like light years away, but here we are in the middle of January already and by the time I blink again, it will be March.  It’s been a fun ride for sure.  Dreaming up recipes is what I love to do and using ingredients that I don’t normally use, like lamb and clams, has pushed my creative envelope to new heights.  High quality ingredients were provided by Border Springs Farm & Rappahannock River Oysters, you should check them out next time you need lamb or clams/oysters or just go check them out.

Here’s a little recap of past recipes before we move on:

Lamb Roulade with Mushroom Duxelle’s and Tawny Port Jus

Clam Cakes with Lemony Greens and a Poached Egg

Lamb & Roasted Root Vegetable Shepherd’s Pie

And last but definitely not least are these sliders.  Surf meets turf on a homemade pretzel roll and the result is incredibly delicious.  So good, in fact, that we had them for lunch and dinner the same day.  These would be a fun addition to your Super Bowl menu for sure!

Here’s a quick tutorial on how to make them.

Start by steaming 2 dozen middleneck clams in a red ale.  I used Rickard’s Red which is a Canadian beer that my husband and I were turned on to by our neighbors.

Remove the clams from the shells and coarse chop them.  Add 8 ounces of room temp cream cheese, 2 tablespoons minced yellow onion, 1/8 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp pepper, 1 tsp Worcestershire and 3/4 tsp Sriracha.  Mix it all up and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes or so.

Add 2 lbs of ground lamb to a bowl.  Mix in 2 tablespoons minced yellow onion, 1 tsp kosher salt, 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper, a big pinch of crushed red pepper flakes and a pinch of smoked paprika.  Use your hands to combine.  Using a 1/3 cup measure, make patties.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Heat up a skillet, grill or grill pan and cook the lamb burgers until they are just cooked through, about 2-3 minutes per side.  Toast some slider buns, like these Pretzel Slider Buns (pictured above) and then give them a good shmear of the clam spread.  Add a lamb patty and a few arugula leaves and spear a cornichon pickle to the top and serve.

I’d like to give a special thanks to the Charleston Wine + Food team for creating a fun recipe contest and I am so honored that they asked me to participate.  I’d also like to give a shout out to Rappahannock River Oysters & Border Springs Farm for supplying the clams/oysters and lamb for these 4 challenges.  I’m a firm believer that great product makes great food and both of these small businesses provided the freshest most amazing meats.

It has also been a pleasure to work with the other 7 bloggers for this event.  See what they made for their last challenge below.

Surf & Turf Sliders

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 14 Sliders

Serving Size: 2 Sliders

Creamy clam spread gets melty and gooey from the warm lamb patties making for a delicious surf meets turf slider. Perfect for your next tailgating or Super Bowl party.

Ingredients

For the Clam Spread:
• 16 ounce bottle red ale, such as Rickard's Red
• 25 middleneck clams, scrubbed
• salt & pepper
• 2 teaspoons minced yellow onion
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon Sriracha sauce, or other hot pepper sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
For the Lamb Burgers:
• 2 lbs ground lamb
• 2 tablespoons minced yellow onion
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• large pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• pinch smoked paprika
• 14 pretzel slider buns
• arugula
• cornichons (optional)

Instructions

For the Clam Spread:
1. Add the beer to a large stockpot. Bring to a boil and add the clams and salt & pepper to taste. Cover and allow to steam for 5 minutes, or until the clams have opened. Remove the clams and allow to cool slightly.
2. Coarsely chop the clams and add to a medium bowl along with the cream cheese, onion, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and sriracha. Stir with a rubber scraper, cover and refrigerate.
For the Lamb Patties:
3. In a medium bowl add the lambs, onion, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and paprika. Use your hand to combine. Use a 1/3 cup measure to form measure the meat and make a patty and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Refrigerate if not using immediately.
4. Heat a skillet, grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Add the lamb patties and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, until just cooked through.
5. Toast the cut side of the slider buns under a broiler for 30 seconds or so, then spread a tablespoon of clam spread on the bun. Add a patty and a few arugula leaves. Use a long toothpick and spear a cornichon with it. Spear the slider and repeat with the remaining sliders. Serve immediately.

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https://www.farmgirlgourmet.com/2013/01/surf-turf-sliders.html

Recipe courtesy of www.farmgirlgourmet.com. Reprinting without permission is unethical.

See the Other Entries for this Month:

Vivek’s Epicurean Adventure – Sweet Potato Gnocchi, Merguez Lamb, Steamed Clams

Taste Food Blog – Gratineed Clams with Spinach, Cheese & Crispy Lamb

A Cook Blog – http://www.acookblog.com/

Mango Tomato – Lambs & Clams

Eat Drink RI – Clambballs

Bunkycooks – Rustic Lambs and Clams Pâté with Cognac Gelée

One Vanilla Bean – Saffron and Smoked Paprika Lambs and Clams with Roasted Garlic Aioli