Zuppa di Cozze For Two
Zuppa di Cozze For Two is perfect for a romantic supper which brings us back to Cefalu, Sicily. John and I have had the pleasure of dining many times in Sicily. We have many favourite places to eat this soup. You wouldn’t think of eating soup on a hot night, yet we have had this when the temperature is till 30 C at 9 pm at night.
Zuppa di Cozze For Two is meant to be shared with your significant other with a good glass of wine or two. The mussels today come from the east coast and are only one day old. We are lucky that today many grocery store chains carry an array of seafood.
We also love Cozze Scopiatte which only uses olive oil, black pepper, parsley, garlic and a splash of fresh lemon juice. My favourite place to eat these is at : http://ragnodorocefalu.it/ Besides the food the owners here go above and beyond to make you feel at home. Our favourite waiter was Franco; he passed away last year. We will always remember him with his fresh plums in the street luring passersby to the restaurant.
I put a couple of tablespoons of flour into a large bowl and after I rinse the mussels they go into this bowl with more water and ice. The flour will help to clean out the sand. I leave them in this bowl for at least 30 minutes. Throw out any mussels that are open.
The ingredients for the simple sauce are assembled.
The mussels hang out in the bowl.
I start the sauce with olive oil, garlic, basil and Italian seasoning. Let it warm up in the pan.
Next I toss in these small cherry tomatoes that are cut in half. Cook for one minute.
I rinse the clams and throw them into the pan and toss them around for a few seconds.
Next the wine goes in.
The lid goes on and they steam for about 5 minutes. Now they are all open and I add some fresh basil. Discard any mussels that don’t open.
I grilled some whole wheat baquette on the grill and it is toasty and ready for this Zuppa.
Plated and ready for two.
Zuppa di Cozze for Two
This is a dish to share!!
Ingredients
The Zuppa
- 1 bag fresh mussels
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- hand full of fresh basil leaves
- 2 cups cherry tomtoes
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 cup white wine
The bread
- 1 large baquette
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp oregano
Instructions
The Zuppa
-
Clean the mussels by rinsing and placing them in a bowl of cold water with a couple of tbsp of flour for 30 minutes.
Rinse the mussels again. Brush off any remaining debris such as beards. They can be easily pulled off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDsBCI2xCX8
In a large pan, add olive oil, basil, garlic and warm for a minute. Do not burn.
Now add the sliced cherry tomatoes.
Cook for 2 minutes and add the rinsed mussels.
Toss everything together and pour in the white wine.
Place lid on pan and cook for 5 minutes.
Remove lid and garnish with fresh basil.
The bread
-
Slice the baquette in half and brush with olive oil.
Sprinkle some oregano on each half.
Put cut side down on barbecue for a minute.
Flip over and cook for another 30 seconds.
Remove and add to the bowls of soup.
Recipe Notes
You can easily double this recipe.
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