Steamed Mussels My Way

Yesterday I decided I needed to get out of the house for awhile. Stretch my legs. Get some fresh air. So where did I end up? *The Grocery Store.* Yep, you heard me. The grocery store.

So while I was there, much to my surprise, they had fresh mussels! I know that doesn't sound very exciting to all of you that live in civilization -- but let me remind you, yet again, that I live in BFE. So, I knew I had to have them!

Steamed Mussels

1.5 pounds mussels

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1/2 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 green onions, chopped (save some of the green top for garnish)

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

1/3 cup tomatoes (I used canned fire roasted)

1 cup white wine

3 Tablespoons cold butter

The first thing you have to do is clean the mussels. I added about a 1/4 cup whole wheat flour to a big bowl and then filled it with approx. 8 cups of water. I then added the mussels and let them soak for at least 30 minutes, so they would release any sand they may have contained. (You can also use cornmeal, or grits. As the mussels eat this substance they "spit out" the sand.) After I let them soak, I dumped them into a collander, and examined them closely. Any mussels that are not closed or will not close when tapped, should be THROWN AWAY, as they are already dead and not to be eaten. Scrub your mussels really good at this point and remove their beards. Put them in the frig while you get everything else ready.

Add the olive oil to a skillet or pot and when heated (the oil will become shimmery) add the onions (both white and green), garlic, basil, salt, and pepper. Cook for a few minutes until onions become translucent (being careful not to brown). Next add your tomatoes and cook for another minute or two to marry the flavors. Add your mussels and toss. Add white wine, turn up the heat, and cover. Bring wine to a boil and cook for 3 minutes or until mussels have opened. (Any mussels that don't open should be THROWN AWAY.)

After your mussels have opened, remove them from pan, and keep warm. (I just put them in a bowl and covered them with the lid from the pan I used.) Crank up the flame to HI and reduce sauce by 2/3. When sauce is reduced, turn off heat, and add butter, 1Tablespoon at a time, until combined. (This will thicken your sauce.)

Pour sauce over mussels and garnish with reserved green onion tops (that I almost forgot!). Serve with good crusty bread and a salad if you'd like.



Happy Birthday Dinner

Recently, I was able to go to Houston to visit my BFF, unfortunately, I wasn't able to be with her for her big day (she turned an amazing 40 this year). Every year, I always ask the people I love the same question, "What do you want to eat for your Birthday?". This year, I didn't have to ask the question, though, as there was no doubt in my mind what the answer would be.

My BFF *LOVES* steak! Ribeyes to be specific. And there is none she would ever rather have more than Houston's Hawaiian Ribeye. I've never been to Houston's but I'll take her word for it -- it must be FABULOUS!

So I decided to do a little research and see if I could recreate her favorite steak for her Birthday dinner. She said it came out exactly like Houston's. I have to admit, I impressed myself with this one! Her ribeye is not pictured but my strip steak is. Normally, I only like ribeyes as well, but on this day, Whole Foods had some of the best looking strip steaks I had seen in a VERY long time. I just couldn't resist.

Just Like Houston's Hawaiian Marinade

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

8 ounce can crushed pineapple with juice

1 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoons ginger powder

Mix all ingredients until well blended and transfer to a zipper type bag. Add your steaks (this is enough marinade for 4 steaks) and marinate for at least 8 hours, turning the bag every 2-3 hours. Just grill them on a REALLY hot grill to your liking! The sugars in this marinade caramelize on the outside of the steak, giving it a great crust! (Now that I'm thinking about it again, I may have to make another tomorrow!)

Along with the steaks, I also tried out Aarti Sequeira's recipe for Massaged Kale Salad from the Food Network. This is not the first time that I have tried one of Aarti's dishes. It's also not the first time I have been disappointed by Aarti's dishes. I really had hope for this one. But no go. It lacked pizzazz. In the end it turned out to be very bland and boring.  I won't make it again, that's for sure.

As I have already posted Whole Foods had some AMAZING heirloom tomatoes while I was in Houston and I just could not pass them up!

So I made a Napoleon of Heirloom Tomatoes and Jumbo Lump Crab

To make this napoleon, I bought 2 enormous tomatoes, a red and a green zebra (it looks green, still, even when it's ripe) and cut them into 1/2" slices. I dressed them with grey sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

I bought a pound of jumbo lump crab (don't forget to check it for pieces of shells and cartilage, but, be careful not to break up the lumps too much if you can help it), and dressed it with the juice of 1/2 lemon, a teaspoon of lemon zest, 2 Tablespoons chopped chives, olive oil and sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper.

To assemble you just put a tomato slice on the plate, then some crab, then another tomato slice, and finish with more crab on top. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and VIOLA!, you're all done!

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!