Baked Stuffed Clams

Ingredients

• 4 cups bread crumbs fresh
• 4 tablespoons butter 
• 6 ounce crab meat drained canned
• 13 ounce clams with juice reserved minced drained canned
• 2 tablespoons flat parsley italian chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 24 servings lemon pepper to taste
• 2  lemons quartered
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 24 servings paprika to taste
• 24  clean clam shells 
• 0.3 cup onion sweet minced

Equipment

• frying pan
• baking sheet
• oven

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C).
2. In a large frying pan, melt butter with olive oil over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until translucent. Stir in clams, crab meat, parsley, lemon pepper, and bread crumbs. Reduce heat to low, and slowly pour in clam juice until mixture is slightly sticky, but not wet. The bread crumbs will continue to absorb moisture, so be careful not to add too much clam juice.
3. Fill each clean clam shell with mixture, pressing tightly into shell. Arrange on a baking sheet, and sprinkle lightly with paprika. (Stuffed shells may be covered and frozen at this point for later use.)
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until golden brown and sizzling. If frozen, bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes, or until warmed through.
5. Serve warm on a platter with lemon wedges.