What's New on Delicious. Social bookmarking site Delicious -- it began Web life with the url http://del.icio.us, which still works -- redesigned its user interface, and offers that page explaining the changes and how to use them. Most considerate.

For you who thought this link would lead to a savory recipe, it will.

California food blogger (and Movable Type expert) Elise Bauer of Simply Recipes is vacationing in South Dartmouth, Mass., right now, and met her first quahog in its natural habitat.

"For most California girls, the idea of "digging for clams" isn't really part of our cultural makeup. But out in Rhode Island, and the beaches south of Cape Cod, digging in the sand for your dinner is apparently a regular summertime activity," she writes.

Most of us try it just once, Elise, and you know why:

Although we went out in low tide, we still had to get chest deep in the water to find a sandy spot to scrape the bottom of with our toes. We found about 6 empty shells or rocks for every intact clam. We were out for more than an hour, shoulders sunburned and toes scraped, nearly stung by red jelly fish, and managed to get a grand total of 9 clams (3 clams each).

Nevertheless, she gamely offers a nice vignette, pics and a local recipe for Stuffies, baked stuffed quahogs, which are large, tough clams. We mince the large ones for chowder; smaller ones -- called steamers -- are steamed and served with clam broth and melted butter. Tiny ones, called little necks, are served raw on the half-shell with lemon.

Baked Stuffed Clams

* 10 large chowder or quahog clams, rinsed, sand and grit removed
* 3 Tbsp minced onion
* 1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
* 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (or 2 teaspoons dried)
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 Tbsp lemon juice
* 1 cup bread crumbs
* 1 Tbsp clam juice (or cooking liquid from steaming the clams)
* Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
* 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Method

1 Fill a large pot with 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water. Bring water to a boil. Add the clams to the boiling water. Reduce the heat to a simmer and let the clams steam for approximately 6-10 minutes, until the shells open. Remove clams from the pot and let cool enough to handle. Discard any clams that have not opened (if they haven't opened it means they were dead to begin with and should not be eaten).

2 Remove the clam meat from the clams (not the clam foot which is attached to the shell) and mince finely. Break apart the clam shells from their hinges. Rinse. Pick 10-12 of the cleanest, nicest looking clam shells and set aside.

3 Preheat oven to 350°F. In a sauté pan, melt the butter on medium heat and add the minced onion. Once the onions have softened (2-3 minutes), add the garlic. Cook the garlic for 1 minute, then add the parsley, bread crumbs, minced clams, lemon juice, and clam juice. Stir until the stuffing mixture is completely moistened. (If too dry, add a bit more butter or clam juice; if too wet, add a bit more bread crumbs.)

You're probably nowhere near a computer, Elise, but if you are, email me and I'll take you out for a great shore dinner caught by somebody else.