Gorgonzola Steamed Mussels and Traditional Mussels

2 pounds of mussels, 2 recipes, 2 very satisfied people. 

Before this, I had never made mussels before.  The past three years have been spent exploring cooking but I wasn’t yet ready to tackle the shell fish department yet.  How do you open the shells? Where do you get them? Can they bite? All are questions I faced before being served Mussels in a creamy gorgonzola sauce at La Cupola in Litchfield, CT.  To be honest, gorgonzola and mussels sounded like a combination I wanted to stay away from.  But I was wrong….so wrong.  My brother and I set off to take on the challenge of this recipe.  Being my first time with mussels, I also opted to make the traditional steamed mussels. I’m aware these recipes are almost identical in their methods and ingredients however the gorgonzola makes them taste so different. 

Gorgonzola Mussels

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh mussels (washed)

2 cups heavy cream (yes I know…but so so good, it’s worth it)

3 tbsp butter (this is getting good)

6 oz of a Guinness beer (oh did I not mention that…whoops)

1 shallot minced

6 cloves of garlic

1/3 pound gorgonzola 

2 tbsp red pepper flakes

Method:

Melt 2 tbsp butter in a pan large enough to fit the mussels.  Sauté shallots and garlic for five minutes until tender and fragrant.  Add cream, beer, and red pepper.  Bring the mixture to a boil and lower the heat to medium.  Stir in the gorgonzola slowly saving roughly 1/4 cup.  Add the mussels and cook with a lid on the pot until the shells open.  Note: any shells that do not open are dead and not suitable for eating.   Remove the mussels with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl.  Pour the broth over the mussels and stir in the extra 1/4 cup of gorgonzola. 

Traditional Steamed Mussels (these are exceptional by the way)

Ingredients:

1 shallot minced

6 cloves of garlic

2 tbsp butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 cup dry white wine

2 tsp dried basil

2 tsp tarragon

2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt and pepper 

Method: 

Melt 2tbsp of butter in a pot or pan large enough to fit the mussels.  Once butter is melted sauté garlic and shallots for about five minutes until fragrant and soft.   Add the wine, cream, and spices and keep the mixture on constant high heat for five minutes.  Add the mussels and cover with a lid.  When the mussels open, they are done.  Note: Any closed mussels are dead and not suitable to eat.  Remove the shells with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl.  Pour the broth over the shells and eat immediately. 

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

So I lied.  I only had two red peppers but I happened to have two yellow peppers as well.  Red and yellow make orange so we can call it Roasted Orange Pepper Pasta.  I love this sauce.  I also needed an excuse to use my new purchase — Italian Harvest Capricci pasta.  

Look at the fun shape!

I already needed to roast some red peppers because I was making my crab cakes.  So it was the perfect excuse to make some red pepper sauce…sorry orange pepper sauce, gotta be accurate.

I began by roasting the peppers (duh).  I chopped off the tops of the peppers and cleaned the insides out.  I flattened them out on baking sheet and drizzled the peppers with olive oil and salt and pepper.

Now it’s time to broil!  I usually broil the peppers for ten minutes until they are are charred and black.

Place the peppers into a large bowl and cover with saran wrap.   I happen to have a vendetta against saran warp because it doesn’t work.  I feel like its a trick they are playing with us humans.  Does anyone else feel this way?  Well anyway, this step is important because it allows the peppers to steam and their skins loosen.

I usually let them sweat for 10-20 minutes.  Once they are finished with their sauna remove the peppers from the bowl.  I find their skin will slide off easily if you slice the center with a knife.

Slice the peppers into thin strips.

Throw some butter into pan and sauté the onions and garlic.

mmmmm….

Does anything smell better than onions and garlic? Next add the peppers.

Cook the peppers for about five minutes.  Then transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender.

Pulse the mixture until it is all pureed.  I like mine to still be a little bit chunky.  Texture never hurt anyone.

Transfer the mixture back to the pan and add chicken broth.

Next add the cream and wine.  Accent with a red pepper flakes and fresh basil.

Pour sauce over pasta of your choice and serve with parmesan cheese.

Ingredients: 

4 Bell Peppers

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

12 oz pasta of your choice

1/2 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup light cream

1/3 cup dry wine

Handful Fresh Basil

Parmesan Cheese 

Salami Mushroom Pizza

I just recently purchased a PizzaCraft Pizza Stone and have been dying to use it.  I finally got the chance tonight after my copious amount of leftovers ran out.  I’m so excited to have a stone because I have always struggled getting the pizza to cook fully through.  Stones are perfect for eliminating hot spots and allowing for a uniform cook through.  I used store bought pizza dough (sue me I’m lazy) and got cooking!

First I washed and diced some mushrooms and preheated the oven to 450 degrees.  Last year I trained myself to like mushrooms.  Literally trained…I ate them everyday until I learned to appreciate their deliciousness.  (This summer I have trained myself to enjoy raw tomatoes).  Now I love mushrooms, especially on pizzas.

Next I diced a red onion and threw the onions and mushrooms into a pan to sauté in olive oil.  I also am obsessed with red onion/mushroom combo on pizza.  Note, I did not have to train myself to like red onions. They are a weird food that I’m in love with.  I literally eat them raw… I’m weird.

Right now I was praying I had some bell peppers to throw in.  I didn’t 😦  I cooked the mushrooms and onions for approximately ten minutes.  Hidden secret: I added a squirt of Sriracha (my favorite) to add a wee bit of a kick to the mixture.

So now I will let you in on a little secret.  I was strolling through Whole Foods one day looking for fancy sopressata when I stumbled upon this gem.  Really this is a gem of an ingredient.  If you love a smokey sausage flavor PLEASE go and buy this salami.  Honestly, I bought it because I was cheap and didn’t want to spend money on sopressata.  But seriously Naturalissima I dig your meats.

 I added the mushroom and onion mixture and tossed it with a 1/2 cup of marina sauce (of your choice) 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and the salami.  You really could put any meat in here.  I think sausage would be pretty tasty.

I then rolled out my pizza dough, dusted the stone with corn meal, and spread a few spoons full of marina sauce onto the dough.  I sprinkled 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese.  It’s really hard for me not to shove shredded mozzarella cheese into my mouth so I’m really proud of myself for having enough leftover to make this pizza. 

 I evenly topped it with the mushroom mixture. I had some leftover ricotta sitting in the fridge so why not right?  Like ricotta cheese could ever ruin food…please.

I baked the pizza for 20 minutes until the crust was golden brown.  Yummmmm.