There aren't a lot of shellfish easier to work with than mussels - they even open themselves for you! So we were pretty excited to recently discover a fresh, local, and sustainable source in Penn Cove's farmed shellfish offerings; I'm sure we'll be trying their oysters and clams soon enough.
We haven't talked enough about how fantastic it's been to work with all these fresh ingredients. It's easy to get in a cooking rut, where the only fresh things you're buying each week are lettuce for lunch salads, onion and cilantro for Mexican, and maybe the occasional tomato or avocado for variety. Having to buy shallots, thyme, celery, peppers, what have you - it all has a knock-on effect for our cooking the rest of the week, and that can only be a good thing.
Can you tell I'm stalling? It's because this is another incredibly simple recipe. (And that's the real secret of cooking, it turns out - use fresh ingredients, and don't try too hard!) Into the pot go the shallots, green onions, pepper, celery, thyme, and bay leaf - let them sweat down a little.
Then it's the mussels' turn! Throw them in, put the lid on, and let them open up. Then, when they're least expecting it, drench them in wine and vermouth.
Once the alcohol has boiled away - yes, I know, terrible waste - you're pretty much done!
Dish those mussels out into a bowl with a generous serving of the sauce, and plenty of bread nearby to soak it up. The only problem you'll have will be figuring out what to do with all those empty shells...
We haven't talked enough about how fantastic it's been to work with all these fresh ingredients. It's easy to get in a cooking rut, where the only fresh things you're buying each week are lettuce for lunch salads, onion and cilantro for Mexican, and maybe the occasional tomato or avocado for variety. Having to buy shallots, thyme, celery, peppers, what have you - it all has a knock-on effect for our cooking the rest of the week, and that can only be a good thing.
Can you tell I'm stalling? It's because this is another incredibly simple recipe. (And that's the real secret of cooking, it turns out - use fresh ingredients, and don't try too hard!) Into the pot go the shallots, green onions, pepper, celery, thyme, and bay leaf - let them sweat down a little.
Then it's the mussels' turn! Throw them in, put the lid on, and let them open up. Then, when they're least expecting it, drench them in wine and vermouth.
Once the alcohol has boiled away - yes, I know, terrible waste - you're pretty much done!
Dish those mussels out into a bowl with a generous serving of the sauce, and plenty of bread nearby to soak it up. The only problem you'll have will be figuring out what to do with all those empty shells...
Clam, clams, I want clams
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