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Mussel Soup
(Zuppa di Cozze)
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| What You Need: |
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4 dozen small mussels in their shells
¼ cup coarsely chopped onions
¼ cup coarsely chopped celery
1 teaspoon coarsely chopped garlic
½ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry white wine
2 cups canned Italian plum or whole-pack tomatoes, chopped but not drained
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon peel
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| How To Cook: |
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1. If the amount of liquid called for in the ingredients sounds insufficient for a soup, do not worry. The shellfish produce their own liquid when cooked, and the dish, although served as a soup, is actually more like mussels in a seasoned liquid.
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2. Scrub the mussels with a stiff brush or soapless steel-mesh scouring pad under cold running water. With a small, sharp knife cut off their "beards" - the very strong, black, ropelike tufts on their shells with which they attach themselves to their anchorages in the sea.
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3. Combine the chopped onions, celery and garlic on a cutting board and chop them into very small pieces. (This mixture is called a battuto; when cooked, it is called a soffritto.)
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4. Heat the ½ cup of olive oil in an enameled or stainless-steel 3- to 4-quart saucepan. Over moderate heat, cook the chopped vegetables in the oil with the basil and a few grindings of pepper.
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5. Stirring frequently, cook the soffritto for 8 to 10 minutes, or until it is lightly colored. Pour in the white wine and boil it briskly to reduce it to about ¼ cup. Then add the chopped tomatoes and their liquid and simmer uncovered over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes.
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6. Drop in the mussels, cover the pan, and cook over high heat, shaking the pan from time to time so that the mussels cook through evenly. At the end of 10 minutes, the mussels should all be open; if not, cook a few minutes longer.
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7. To serve, ladle the mussels, shells and all, into individual soup bowls and spoon the soup over them. (You might find that an extra dish or bowl on the table will be useful for the shells of the mussels.)
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8. Sprinkle each serving with grated lemon peel and accompany with hot, crusty Italian bread, which you can dip into any remaining seasoned broth.
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