Recipe Source: Botascos, Jim. The New Greek Cuisine. Broadway Books, New York, 2006 pp. 184-5
Mmm.... shellfish. I love them. It took me a long time to work up the courage to make them myself, though, but now that I have I seriously regret having been such a chicken for so long. They're such a tasty treat! I made these for dinner one recent night, and my only real regret about them was not having made enough bread to soak up the sauce!
I made a few changes, although they're kind of minor. First of all, I did not count out the mussels. If I had, I would have paid a small fortune to make this dish. Instead, I just bought the two-pound sack-o-mussels. I used Lemony Vegetable Broth instead of clam broth, because I had it on hand and because it's significantly less expensive. I couldn't find cinnamon basil and so used regular, and I increased both the garlic and the tomatoes (tomatoes being fresh from the garden and for free.)
Ouzo Mussels with Feta (serves 2 - 4; approx. $3.16/serving)
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1 generous pinch cayenne pepper
5 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup ouzo
2 cups Lemony Vegetable Broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 lb mussels, scrubbed and debearded
1/2 cup diced feta
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Equipment:
- Large saute pan
- Large, shallow, oven-proof serving dish (I used the bottom half of a tagine.)
- Preheat your broiler.
- Heat the oil in the saute pan.
- Add the garlic. Cook 2 minutes.
- Add the cayenne and stir to blend.
- Add the tomatoes. Cook 1 minute.
- Add the ouzo and boil 2 minutes.
- Add the broth, half the basil and the mussels.
- Cover and steam 5 minutes. Discard any mussels that have not opened.
- Transfer the mussels to the serving dish.
- Add half the feta to the sauce in the pan, along with the salt and pepper and the remaining basil. Heat briefly, then pour over the mussels.
- Sprinkle the remaining feta over the mussels, then broil 2 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
