½ tender bread crumbs made from day-old country-style bread ground in a food processor
6 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. dry white wine
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup ripe sweetest, most fragrant cherry tomatoes available, preferably sweet 100s, halved
½ lb. dried spaghetti
6 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
6 anchovies, minced
¼-½ tsp. marash pepper flakes or 2 pinches dried red pepper flakes
1¼-1½ lb. smallest manila clams or cockles, scrubbed
Leaves from 3 branches basil (about 1 cup), coarsely chopped or equivalent of cilantro
Sprigs from 6 stems flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped. if you decide on cilantro leave out the parsley
1/2 cup of warm ground croutons
1/2 pound pancetta
See article on storing live shellfish
Preheat oven to 400°. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
Meanwhile make croutons enough so that you can grind them down to 1/2 cup. When complete grind them into crumbs and keep warm.
Put tomatoes in a bowl, season with a few pinches of salt, and set aside.
Bake pancetta till crisp and then chop and set aside for sprinkling over finished dish along with the croutons
Add pasta to boiling water and cook until just tender, about 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, put garlic, red pepper flakes, clams, and anchovies and remaining oil and wine into a large skillet, cover tightly, and cook over high heat, swirling skillet over heat occasionally, until all clams have popped open, 2-5 minutes. Discard any clams that refuse to open.
Uncover skillet and reduce heat to medium-low. Taste the brothy liquid in the skillet; it should be very flavorful. If it's not, simmer it a bit to reduce it and concentrate the flavors.
Fold in tomatoes, basil, and parsley or alternatively the cilantro and simmer until just warmed through, about 3 minutes.
Drain pasta, add to skillet with 1/8 cup of pasta water and toss for a minute
Add clams, and toss well. Adjust salt to taste.
Transfer to a platter, sprinkle with the bread crumb mixture, and serve immediately.
