By August 2028. The house permits came through in August and Carol called to say that her preferred contractor was available starting in May 2029 if we wanted to move forward on that timeline. I said yes. She said she'd have a more detailed construction schedule by October. I said I'd be ready.
Telling Kai felt important—it was his news too, in the way that things happening to the land he'd been part of were his. He'd been out with me every week for years. He'd planted trees on this ground. He'd eaten at its fires. I told him while we were working in the garden one evening and he stopped what he was doing and looked at the meadow for a moment and said: where will it go exactly? I showed him Carol's site plan. He looked at it carefully and said: so the kitchen window faces the persimmons. I said yes. He said: good.
The sixth traditional foods workshop ran in late August. Madison was teaching half of it now—her education degree had given her formal pedagogy skills to layer over the traditional knowledge, and the combination was producing something better than either alone. She'd developed her own curriculum framework for the fry bread and bean bread sessions: starting with why before moving to how, grounding the technique in its history and significance before the students ever touched the dough. It was the right order.
I watched her work and thought: you know you've taught someone correctly when they've surpassed you in some specific dimension. She was a better formal teacher than I was. That was fine. That was the point. You want your students to take what you gave them and do something with it you couldn't have done yourself.
Watching Madison lead the bean bread session that August—starting with the story before touching the dough—I kept thinking about how the best traditional recipes work the same way: you have to understand what you’re making before the technique clicks into place. Fried clams are like that for me. They’re elemental, tactile, the kind of food you learn by doing alongside someone who cares about doing it right. After a workshop afternoon like that one, standing at a hot pan with good oil and fresh clams felt like the right way to close the day—honoring the same instinct that says some knowledge is best passed hand to hand.
Fried Clams
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs fresh shucked clams, drained and patted dry
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup buttermilk
- Vegetable oil or canola oil, for frying (about 2 inches deep)
- Lemon wedges, for serving
- Tartar sauce or cocktail sauce, for serving
Instructions
- Heat the oil. Pour oil into a heavy-bottomed pot or deep skillet to a depth of about 2 inches. Heat over medium-high heat to 375°F. Use a thermometer for accuracy—consistent temperature is the difference between crisp and greasy.
- Make the dredge. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne. In a separate shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with the buttermilk until combined.
- Coat the clams. Working in small batches, dip the clams into the egg-buttermilk mixture, letting the excess drip off, then dredge thoroughly in the flour-cornmeal mixture. Press gently so the coating adheres. Set aside on a plate in a single layer.
- Fry in batches. Carefully lower a small batch of coated clams into the hot oil—do not crowd the pot. Fry for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, turning once, until deep golden brown and cooked through. Crowding drops the oil temperature and steams instead of fries.
- Drain and season. Remove fried clams with a slotted spoon or spider and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Season immediately with a pinch of salt while still hot. Allow the oil to return to 375°F between batches.
- Serve. Arrange on a platter with lemon wedges and your choice of tartar or cocktail sauce. Serve immediately—fried clams are best eaten right from the pan.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 370 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 14g | Carbs: 36g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 520mg