Clams Oreganato Crackers

Want a quick and easy appetizer? How about a great go-to snack for a party? A nice hot hors d'oeuvre. I call these "clams oreganata on crackers".

My father used to make clams oreganato as hors d'oeuvers on special occasions. Originally, he made them from fresh clams which required shucking the clam; scooping out the insides and chopping the meat. Then he would add all the ingredients back into the clam shell and bake.

Later, he discovered if he saved the shells, he could just buy minced clams in a can and they tasted the same.

My version, on crackers is a lot easier to make than clams oreganata in the shell. Just grab a can of minced clams off your grocer's shelf and you are good to go. No mess of opening clams and chopping. Yet, they still have that great clam taste.

If you can't find Triscuits (a woven wheat biscuit) I would suggest any other square or rectangular plain wheat cracker. However, the open weave allows the flavors to be more easily absorbed and add extra texture.

Triscuits come in flavors and also salted and unsalted. I find the salted salty enough so that I don't need to add salt to the recipe. My significant other thinks adding salt tastes better as snacks should be salty.

My supermarket frequently has minced clams on sale. I stock up as I also use them to make spaghetti with clam sauce. Even when they are not on sale, they are still fairly inexpensive.

An oven safe dish to bake them in and yet pretty enough to bring to the table to serve.

If desired, omit the aluminum foil and just spray the surface with a little cooking oil so the cheese doesn't stick to the plate too much and to make clean up easier.

The advantage would be, if the aluminum foil is omitted, you could just reheat by popping in the microwave