1. With a small, sharp knife, remove the casings of the sausages. Crumble the meat coarsely and drop it into a sieve. Plunge the sieve into a pan of boiling water and boil briskly for 1 minute. Then spread the sausage meat out on a double thickness of paper towels to drain.
2. In a heavy 12-inch skillet or similar-sized casserole, heat the olive oil over moderate heat until a light haze forms above ft. Add the onions and, stirring frequently, cook for 5 minutes, or until they are soft and transparent but not brown.
3. Add the paprika, red pepper and a liberal grinding of black pepper and cook for a minute or two. Then add the sausage meat, ham, tomatoes, parsley, wine, garlic and bay leaves, raise the heat and bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, cook briskly until most of the liquid in the pan evaporates.
4. Arrange the clams hinged side down over the meat and tomato mixture, cover the skillet tightly and cook over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, or until all the clams open. Discard any that remain closed. To serve, transfer the clams to heated soup plates and ladle the sauce over them.
NOTE:
This dish takes its name from the Portuguese "cataplana", a metal casserole shaped like a clam.
