This Italian soup is hearty and can be served as a meal or as a first course. For a family meal it is not necessary to remove the mussels from the shells before serving, but it is preferable to do so when presenting this soup for a gourmet meal. It is important to ensure that the mussels you cook are alive and well. Only completely closed mussels are alive. To check if the open mussels are still alive, hit the top of the shell and the shell closes within a few minutes the mussel is still alive.
The amount will give 4 servings if you want to serve it before a first course.
Servings 2
Add garlic, basil and cook 1 minute.
Add wine, bring to a boil and reduce until 1/3 of liquid remain. Tilting the saucepan help to evaluate remaining liquid.
Add tomatoes, bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 Minutes stirring once or twice.
While the soup base is simmering, wash the mussels, remove any barbs (small filaments) if any and discard any mussels that are not fully closed.
Add the mussels to the cooking broth, bring to a boil and cook over a fairly high heat for about 5 minutes [/ cooked-timer] or until all the mussels are open. Stir once or twice during this operation. Cooking is done as soon as the mussels are opened. Mussels that remain closed should be removed from the pot and discarded in the trash.
Remove the mussels from the shells and return to the soup. Pour into bowls over garlic croutons or serve croutons on the side if desired.
Ingredients
Directions
Add garlic, basil and cook 1 minute.
Add wine, bring to a boil and reduce until 1/3 of liquid remain. Tilting the saucepan help to evaluate remaining liquid.
Add tomatoes, bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 Minutes stirring once or twice.
While the soup base is simmering, wash the mussels, remove any barbs (small filaments) if any and discard any mussels that are not fully closed.
Add the mussels to the cooking broth, bring to a boil and cook over a fairly high heat for about 5 minutes [/ cooked-timer] or until all the mussels are open. Stir once or twice during this operation. Cooking is done as soon as the mussels are opened. Mussels that remain closed should be removed from the pot and discarded in the trash.
Remove the mussels from the shells and return to the soup. Pour into bowls over garlic croutons or serve croutons on the side if desired.
