Lately I’ve fallen into a “what am I going to make for dinner?” rut. My Great Aunt Nita had a system – Monday chicken, Tuesday meatloaf, Wednesday spaghetti, Thursday pork chops, Friday fish. There were no menus to mull over, no grocery lists to make, personally I think she was on to something! Although I don’t know if I could be that stringent, I do think a list of tried and true dishes I don’t make that often taped to the fridge for inspiration may not be such a bad idea. Fettuccine with mussels in a spicy red sauce, heavy on the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes, would be at the top of that list.
- 2 pounds fresh mussels in the shell
- 1 cup water or chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 – 28 ounce can Italian plum tomatoes, crushed by hand*
- crushed red pepper flakes
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 pound fresh** or dried fettuccine
1. Scrub the mussels under cold running water, cutting the beards off with a sharp knife. The mussels should be closed, any that are open – rap on the counter. If they don’t close, throw them away.
2. Place the mussels and water/chicken stock in a large saucepan over medium heat. As they open, take them out and set aside.
3. When all of the mussels have opened (there may be a few that have not – discard), strain the liquid through a paper towel or a coffee filter into a bowl. This is to remove any grit from the mussels. Start boiling the water for the pasta.
4. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large frying pan, add the garlic stirring constantly to make sure the garlic doesn’t burn. When garlic is fragrant, add the reserved cooking liquid, mussels, and plum tomatoes. Simmer over medium heat.
5. Drop the fettuccine in the boiling salted water. Taste the broth – add salt and pepper to taste, and crushed red pepper flakes depending on how much heat you prefer. Continue to simmer while pasta cooks.
6. Drain pasta, and turn it into the pan of mussels, making sure the pasta is well coated with the sauce for a few minutes. Spoon onto a large platter and serve immediately. Serves four.
* I used 2 – 14 ounce cans of Rienzi’s Italian cherry tomatoes.
** If you’re interested in making fresh fettuccine go here.
