Thursday, October 25, 2012

Mussels with Plum Tomato Sauce

Last week, to prepare myself for my European vacation, I started eating the food of the countries I was visiting. And by that I mean...I ate a lot of mussels.

I love mussels. I really do. They're pretty darn cheap (although you need a lot to fill you up), take only a few minutes to cook (which is perfect for a working woman) and take on the flavor of what you cook them in without completely losing their own unique taste.

I posted one of my favorite mussel recipes early in the year, which just does not do justice to the frequency for which I eat them. I do hate blogs that constantly use the same protein (as you may remember my feeling of "chicken, AGAIN?") but I also want to represent the amount that I actually eat ingredients...hence the number of salmon recipes and my clear love for a good salsa/relish.

So, alas, mussels are likely to start making a more frequent appearance. Good for those who love them. Maybe not so much for those who don't. However, many of these recipes can also be used on clams, for people who are fans of those, shrimp, or even to cook a piece of light white fish in. The possibilities are really endless.

The one completely necessary, absolutely needed ingredient for every single mussel recipe? A loaf of good French bread, for sopping up the sauce. #yummy





1 lb. mussels

2 plum tomatoes, chopped
5 cloves garlic (yep, get ready), minced
1 shallot, minced
Italian parsley
Olive oil
Butter
White wine

Heat your olive oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, drop in the garlic and shallot and saute until golden brown. Add a few cubes of butter to enrich the sauce.




Once the butter has melted, add the chopped plum tomatoes and saute until the tomatoes let loose some of their juice and start to...wilt?



Add mussels. Pour white wine until about 1" is in the pot. Add some more cubes of butter (unless you are on a diet)

Put lid on pot and allow mussels to steam for about 5 minutes. Remove to a bowl. Discard any mussels that have not opened and enjoy those that have!


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