Lobsters, clams, mussels, potatoes and corn star in our stovetop clambake. Serve with flavor-packed sauces, like cocktail sauce or tartar sauce, and there won’t be a need for the bowls of melted butter that so often turn otherwise virtuous seafood into a nutritional disaster.

Makes 4 servings

ACTIVE TIME: 20 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 45 minutes

EASE OF PREPARATION: Moderate

1 pound small red-skinned potatoes
2 whole live lobsters (about 1 1/2 pounds each)
12 cherrystone, steamer or littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/2 pound mussels, scrubbed and debearded if necessary (see Tip)
4 ears corn, husked and cut into thirds

1. Place a steamer basket in a large stockpot, add 1 inch of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Place potatoes in the basket, cover the pot and steam for 4 minutes. Reduce the heat slightly, if necessary, to prevent boiling over.
2. Place lobsters on top of the potatoes; cover and steam for 4 minutes. Place clams and mussels on top of the lobsters and potatoes; cover and continue steaming for 4 minutes more. Place corn on top of the shellfish; cover and continue steaming until the clams have opened and the potatoes are tender, 4 to 8 minutes more.
3. Arrange the corn, mussels, clams and potatoes on serving platters. Remove lobster claws and tails by twisting them from the body. Cut the tails lengthwise (see How to Shell a Lobster, below). Discard the bodies. Add the split tails and claws to the platters. Serve immediately.

How to Shell a Lobster:
1. Grasp claw at the knuckle, near the body. With a firm twist, remove the claw from the body. Repeat with the second claw.
2. To remove claw meat, crack through the claw shell using a pair of kitchen shears or a lobster cracker.
3. Holding the body in one hand and firmly grasping the tail in the other, twist and gently pull the tail from the body. (Discard the body.)
4. Cut the tail in half lengthwise with kitchen shears, starting from the underside. Serve halves in the shell or remove the meat.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 274 calories; 3 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g mono); 56 mg cholesterol; 40 g carbohydrate; 24 g protein; 3 g fiber; 271 mg sodium; 564 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Selenium (57% daily value), Vitamin C (50% dv), Iron (35% dv), Potassium (16% dv).
2 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings
Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch, 2 1/2 very lean meat

TIP: Tip: To clean mussels, scrub with a stiff brush under cold running water. Scrape off any barnacles using the shell of another mussel. Pull off the fuzzy “beard” from each one (some mussels may not have a beard).

MAKE AHEAD TIP: Equipment: Large stockpot, collapsible metal steamer basket

RELATED RECIPES: Asian Mignonette | Cocktail Sauce | Tartar Sauce

So summery and pretty easy. We did have a little bowl of melted butter for the traditionalists, too!

Angela