Mussels With Prosciutto And Sherry Food

MUSSELS IN A SHERRY MARINADE

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients except the mussels in a very large pan. (You may want to tie the more pungent flavorings such as the chile pepper, cloves, and peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth so they are easy to remove after cooking.) Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, scrub the mussels under running water, pulling off the beards. Discard any mussels that are broken or do not close when tapped on the counter.
• Stir the mussels into the hot marinade. Cover the pan and cook over high heat, stirring them once, until the mussels open, about 5 minutes. Take care not to overcook them or they will be tough. Leave them to cool in the cooking liquid.
• Transfer the mussels to a bowl, with the marinade, discarding any that have not opened. Discard the chile pepper. Cover tightly and refrigerate the mussels for 24 hours, stirring occasionally?they will be plump and absorb almost all the liquid. Let them come to room temperature before serving in bowls, discarding the seasonings in the cheesecloth.
• Alternative: Serve the mussels at once, while still piping hot. Discard the chile pepper, or the bag of seasonings if used, and taste the broth. If you find it too spicy, stir in some cream. Serve the mussels with plenty of bread.

MUSSELS WITH SHERRY, SAFFRON, AND PAPRIKA

Steps:

• Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic; sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add Sherry, tomatoes with juice, paprika, and saffron; sprinkle with salt and generous amount of pepper. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; boil gently 3 minutes to blend flavors. Add mussels and half of parsley; cover and cook until mussels open, about 3 minutes (discard any mussels that do not open). Stir in remaining parsley. Divide mussels and juices among bowls and serve.

MUSSELS IN SHERRY

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pan set over a low heat and add the garlic. Cook until softened, but not coloured.
• Add the parsley, sherry, chili and seasoning and boil the liquid for 30 seconds.
• Toss in the mussels, cover with a lid and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the shells have opened.
• Serve hot or at room temperature.

MUSSELS AND SHRIMP WITH PROSCIUTTO IN GARLIC SAFFRON WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Clean and scrub the fresh mussels in cold water, discard the open ones that after you tap them with a knife they would not close.
• Add the butter to the pan and saute onions, garlic, procciutto ham and saffron threads For about 5-10 minutes at med temperature. Add 1 teaspoons of hot sauce.
• Add the wine to the pot and mix well, then add the mussels with the parsley and basil (mix well) and tomatoes over; cook for 5 minutes at med-high temperature. Stir and remove open mussels (leave the closed ones in the pot for additional 1-2 minutes; if they do not open, discard them).
• Add shrimp and cook for few minutes until pink; remove them also.
• Make a roux with cornstarch and cream whisked slowly into the pot containing the wine mixture until it thickens up, test for salt and pepper and add the sherry to it; whisk well and return mussels and shrimp back to pot, heat up for about 5-10 minutes at medium to medium low temperature.
• Serve with your choice of pasta (I prefer Linguini or Rigatoni).
• *note.
• This also can be served as is, with no pasta, just use less cornstarch in cream (not to thicken the sauce) and serve in a bowl with nice crusty bread.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH SHERRY, TOMATOES AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in heavy medium pot over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add tomatoes with their juices, whole onion, basil and 1 tablespoon oregano to pot. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer sauce until reduced to 1 3/4 cups, about 1 hour. Remove onion and discard. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add parsley, bay leaf, crushed red pepper, remaining 1 tablespoon garlic and 2 tablespoons oregano. Sauté until garlic is tender, about 1 minute. Stir in Sherry and tomato sauce. Add mussels and stir to coat. Cover and simmer until mussels open, about 5 minutes; discard any mussels that do not open. Using tongs, transfer mussels to large serving bowl. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle sauce over mussels and serve.