{ mussels in garlic-butter white wine sauce }

So many restaurants up here in New England serve delicious appetizers of mussels and crusty French bread. I'm never able to resist ordering them, along with a glass of white wine.

So on a warm summer afternoon when Ty decided to grill steaks (of course), I thought I'd add some of my own surf to his turf. Mussels were on my mind, so mussels were what I made.

So easy. So simple. So delicious -- a perfect dinner for two!

Next time I'll add more garlic to the sauce, as well as some fresh green herbs -- I'm thinking Italian parsley. Other than that, it was pretty close to perfect.

Mussels in Garlic-Butter White Wine Sauce
(adapted from tastykitchen.com)

Ingredients
2 pounds fresh mussels
1 cup dry white wine
1 sweet yellow onion, finely chopped
6 large garlic cloves, minced
4 tablespoons butter (I used salted)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
salt and pepper, to taste
1 loaf crusty French bread

Process
Thoroughly rinse mussels under cold water in a colander; give a sharp yank and pull toward the hinge end of the shell any exposed mussel beards.

Melt butter and olive oil over medium-low heat.


Add onion and garlic; cook for 3 minutes or until translucent. Add white wine, thyme and mussels. Gently stir.

Cover mussels for about 8 minutes. Discard any unopened mussels. Season with salt and pepper.

While mussels cook, place the bread on an oven rack for 8 minutes. Slice.

Dump mussels and broth into a bowl. Place bread around the outside edge. Serve and dip bread into the broth.

{ roasted striped bass with shrimp and mussels }

Ty went fishing last weekend and caught some fish.

They were big fish.

So an obvious item on the dinner menu this week was striped bass, in some form. I opted for a recipe adapted from Ina's bag of tricks.

Ingredients

to remove excess sand, soak mussels for 20-min in water and a spoonful of flour


• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped yellow onions
• 2 ounces pancetta or bacon, diced
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, drained and diced
• 1 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 (2 to 3-pound) striped bass fillet, skin removed
• 1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 24 mussels, cleaned and debearded
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat oil in a medium saute pan and saute the onion and bacon/pancetta over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the tomatoes, saffron, salt, pepper, white wine, and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes.

Lay the fish in a 10-by-14-inch baking dish and season with salt and pepper. Add the shrimp and mussels to the dish. Pour the sauce over the seafood and bake uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes, until the fish and shrimp are cooked through and the mussels are open. Sprinkle with basil and serve.