Topped with shallot butter and bacon, these dainty baked littlenecks are the pinkies-up appetizer your next dinner party needs.

Ingreadients:

•  Rock salt
•  24 littleneck clams, scrubbed
•  8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
•  2 medium shallots, finely chopped (about ½ cup)
•  ¼ tsp. sweet Hungarian paprika
•  Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
•  4 slices of bacon, cut crosswise into 1-in. pieces

Direction

1. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 500°F. Fill a large rimmed baking sheet halfway with rock salt and set aside.
2. Using a shucking knife, open the clams, loosening the meat from the top and bottom shells, then discarding the top shells. Nestle the shucked clams (in their bottom shells) atop the rock salt and set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, stir together the butter, shallots, paprika, and salt and pepper to taste. Spoon a generous 1 teaspoon of the seasoned butter onto each clam, then top each with a piece of bacon. Bake until the edges of the bacon are crisp and the butter is browned and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Serve the clams casino hot.