May 12, 2010

Clam Dip ‘n Bread Bowl

appetizer, bread, cheese, clams, fish/seafood

Presented by

43 ratings

Prep time: 12 minutes
baking time 11/2 hours
Servings: 30

This recipe makes a lot of clam dip, but Grandma knew she needed a lot to satisfy all of us.

Ingredients

1 (1-pound) round loaf sourdough bread
2 (6 1/2-ounce) cans minced clams
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 (1-pound) loaf French bread

Directions

1

Preheat the oven to 300°F.
2

Cut the top off the sourdough bread and set aside. Remove the inside of the loaf, reserving the pieces of bread.
3

Drain the clams, reserving 1/2 cup clam juice. Combine clams, clam juice, cream cheese, parsley, Cajun seasoning, seasoned salt, hot pepper sauce and cayenne pepper in a large bowl and mix well. Spoon into the bread bowl. Replace the top of the bread.
4

Wrap the bread bowl with 2 layers of foil. Place on a baking sheet. Bake for 11/2 hours.
5

Unwrap the bread bowl and place on a serving platter. Remove the top. Cut the French bread into bite-size pieces. Arrange the reserved sourdough bread pieces and the French bread pieces around the bread bowl. Use the bread pieces for dipping.

Grandma's Secret Trick

To make a dip that was equally delicious but quicker, Grandma scooped out the bread bowl, then mixed up the dip using 1 cup of sour cream instead of one of the packages of cream cheese, and she added an envelope of onion soup mix. She let the dip chill for 30 minutes to soften the soup mix. Then she spooned the dip into the bread bowl and served it with bread or crackers.