Steamed Penn Cove Mussels

Well hello again blog world!  I promise I haven't forgotten you.  Life just got mildly crazy for a while.  Between a puking child, my parents visiting, giving 2 workshops at a youth convention, and providing temporary child care for a good friend who had her 2nd baby, I haven't been much of a gourmet cook.
Forgive me. 
I've made things like...breaded pork chops, spaghetti, and beef pad thai (same recipe as chicken).  Nothing too exciting.  Nothing much to blog about. 

I did however get to make some AMAZING steamed mussels while my parents were visiting for the weekend.

While shopping for seafood at Central Market last week I stalked the seafood counter.  They had some Penn Cove Mussels on sale and I was having a craving for some shellfish.  I thought about getting some the week before, but I couldn't seem to find any recipes for steamed mussels that didn't involve white wine.  Since I'm preggo we don't have any wine in the house and I wasn't going to buy a whole bottle for one recipe.  I'm always a little wary of cooking with alcohol if the cooking time is short too, because I'm not sure if all the alcohol will burn off if something is only simmered for 3 or 4 minutes. 

So I started up a conversation with the lady at the seafood counter and asked her if you could cook mussels without wine.  Her eyes went wide and she said, "Well of course honey!  Just use broth!!  Of course, of course."  That was a done deal.  She admired my children and we chat for a bit while she filled a bag with Penn Cove Mussels for me, all the while assuring me that these would be the best mussels I've ever tasted.  She said, "They are the best mussels anywhere!"  Cool.  Best ever and local.  I can deal with that.

I was a bit skeptical, however, because I didn't think that any mussel could really be that different from any other mussel..... even a frozen boxed mussel from New Zealand which is all I've ever really had or cooked. 

I was wonderfully mistaken!!
If you ever get a chance to have Penn Cove Mussels, take it!  They're amazing. They're not chewy.  They taste like a cross between oysters and clams.  They're so addicting!!! 

I'll be honest, I looked at so many recipes that I have no idea what recipe I actually went off of.  But I do remember what I did, so I'll tell you.

Steamed Penn Cove Mussels

1lb Penn Cove Mussels
1/4c vegetable broth (if you don't have wine issues, use white wine)
3tbsp butter
2 large cloves of garlic minced
2tsp parsley
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Scrub and De-Beard your mussels.  Check out this article for some instructions on how to do that.

2.  Put your mussels and the broth into a pot, cover them and cook over medium heat for 4-6 minutes until the mussels have opened.  Remove the mussels with a slotted spoon and set them aside.  Discard the mussels that haven't opened. 

3.  Boil the broth on high for a minute or two.  Lower the heat to medium and add the garlic and butter. 

4.  Add the Mussels back in and add the parsley and pepper.  Stir everything until the mussels are coated in sauce.  Transfer to a serving tray and pour the rest of the sauce over the mussels. 



Not the greatest picture.  They were polished off pretty quickly, so I didn't get any other ones!



Geez, these things were so good I think I'll have to get more for this Friday.  Jon's not the hugest seafood fan and he seemed to like these well enough.

I served these as an appetizer before a large dinner, but I'd imagine that if you were having them for a main course you'd want to have about a pound per person.  I think I'll be serving these for dinner on Friday either with some foccacia bread or some garlic bread on homemade baguettes.  MMmm....

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Thank you God for new life!  Please bless our friends Steve, Josie and Lily and their new baby girl Dorothy! 

Amen.