Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup hot water
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 cup lard at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• About 3 cups vegetable oil for frying
• 1 1/2 pounds small hard-shelled clams (about 2 inches across), scrubbed
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 1/2 pounds cultivated mussels
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup chopped scallions
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 fresh serrano or jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon paprika (not hot)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 pound sea scallops, tough ligament from side of each discarded and scallops finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• Equipment: a 4-inch round cookie cutter; a deep-fat thermometer
• 1 deep-fat thermometer
• Accompaniment: tomato salsa

Instructions

1. Stir salt into hot water until dissolved.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, and sugar into a large bowl, then make a well in center and add lard and butter. Stir salted water into well with a wooden spoon, melting lard and butter, then stir flour into liquid, adding a little water if necessary, to form a soft and pliable dough. Knead dough on an unfloured surface until smooth and glossy, 3 to 5 minutes (dough will be soft and slightly sticky).
3. Cover dough with a kitchen towel (not terry cloth).
4. Make filling: Cook clams in wine in a medium saucepan, covered, over medium-high heat until just opened wide, about 5 minutes (discard any that remain unopened). Transfer clams to a bowl with a slotted spoon, then cook mussels in same liquid, covered, stirring once or twice, until opened, 3 to 5 minutes (discard unopened ones). Add mussels to clams and strain cooking liquid through a paper-towel-lined sieve into a bowl.
5. Cook clams in wine in a medium saucepan, covered, over medium-high heat until just opened wide, about 5 minutes (discard any that remain unopened). Transfer clams to a bowl with a slotted spoon, then cook mussels in same liquid, covered, stirring once or twice, until opened, 3 to 5 minutes (discard unopened ones). Add mussels to clams and strain cooking liquid through a paper-towel-lined sieve into a bowl.