Fishin The Cape in January

[Offshore]

Well, here it is 2/3 through January and the fishing has been fabulous. I've been out chasing the wily Quahog at least once and sometimes twice each week. This year, I decided to take only Littlenecks and with one exception I've been able to hold to that desire. I steam and eat them, make Clams Casino and Stuffed Clams. I've only made one chowdah so far this winter.

Two weeks ago I discovered a flat that was pretty well loaded with Razor Clams; a species I had never eaten but had heard great stories about. I brought a couple dozen home, found a couple recipes on Google, and had a fantastically good meal of light, batter-quick-fried razors.

This week, I found the bonanza; at least to me. I found a flat with harvestable quantities of Soft-shell (Steamer) Clams. These are the clams I've eaten all my life; from my youth in Gloucester to an adult in New Hampshire until moving here to the Cape. Fried, steamed or in a chowdah; I still feel there is nothing that can hold a candle to a soft-shell clam. Tonight, my supper was two dozen steamers with a glass of White Zinfandel. Truly, Cape Cod has much to offer an inveterate fisherman!