MOULES MARSEILLAISE (with fennel Pernod broth, for four as a first course, two as a main course)

½ cup peeled, seeded and chopped Italian plum tomatoes

1 onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup finely chopped fennel (bulb only)

1-½ tablespoons thyme leaves, chopped

¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

¾ cup dry white wine

½ cup Pernod

2 pounds cultivated mussels, scrubbed

¼ cup chopped basil

a baguette, to accompany

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1. Cook onions, garlic, fennel, thyme and red pepper flakes in oil in a 5 to 6 quart pot over medium-low heat until softened, 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add wine, Pernod, tomato and ½ teaspoon pepper and simmer briskly until liquid is reduced by half, 4 to 5 minutes.

3. Add mussels and cook, covered, shaking pot occasionally, just until mussels are open wide, about 3 to 6 minutes. (Discard any mussels that remain unopened after 6 minutes.)  Stir in basil and salt to taste.

 

 

adapted from Emeril Lagasse, Emeril’s New New Orleans Cooking