MUSSELS WITH FENNEL, CREAM & PERNOD

By Ana Larramendi

Serves 2 as main course or 3- 4 as an appetizer
 
Fennel; A lovely, unique vegetable, very popular throughout Europe with a very subtle anise/licorice flavor.
As a person who has never cared for licorice flavors in sweet foods, I have found that I LOVE IT in savory foods…and particularly pared with seafood. Throughout France and Italy you find many variations of fish and shellfish cooked with fennel--it is really a classic pairing and absolutely worth trying. I am starting here with a copy of one of my favorite mussel preparations served at a local Madison Restaurant…Someone might kill me for printing this…but please make it before they do!
 
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 shallots, peeled and finely diced
1 C. Fennel, bulb only, finely shaved into thin slices
1 C. Fresh tomato, cored and cut in small dice
1 C. Dry white wine
1 teas. Salt
½ teas. Ground black pepper
3 whole bay leaves
2-3 large sprigs of fresh Thyme (or ½ teas. dry)
1 C. heavy whipping cream
1/3 C. Pernod (French Anise flavored aperitif)
2 pounds fresh mussels, cleaned and debearded*
Fennel fronds, chopped, for garnish (Optional)
 
Instructions:
Choose a large 6-8 qt. pot with a lid that has a non-corrosive cooking surface (preferably stainless steel or enameled iron--avoid aluminum, cast iron, or a something with a non-stick coating) it should be large enough to hold all the mussels--which will increase a 1/3 in volume once they steam open.
 
In this pot heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook till it becomes slightly golden, then immediately add the chopped shallot and shaved fennel.
Over a medium heat continue cooking these until they begin to soften. Then add the tomato, white wine, salt, pepper, bay leaves and thyme. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the whipping cream and Pernod. Return to a vigorous boil and let the sauce cook uncovered for about 3-4 minutes. At this point the cream will be starting to reduce and thicken while the flavors start to concentrate and intensify.
 
Now add all your mussels at once, stirring several times so they all get coated with sauce.
Cover the pot with the lid, lower the heat to medium and cook 3-4 minutes with one extra stir in between.
As soon as all the mussel shells open, (even if slightly) they are ready to serve. Don’t overcook! Or you will have little shriveled mussels in their shells! Discard unopened shells.
Ladle the mussels into bowls and then distribute the sauce evenly among the bowls. Sprinkle with the chopped fennel fronds. Serve with toasted ciabatta slices to soak up the yummy juice! Also have an empty side bowl ready to toss the shells after eating the mussels.
 
Notes:
About Mussels*
Mussels are available year round but seem to be at their peak of plumpness March-May for the black shelled variety. I consider a portion size to be about 1 pound per person.  In Madison, Seafood Center and Metcalf’s have the most reliable fresh mussels. I prefer PEI (Prince Edward Island) because they also come well cleaned and debearded…so they are ready to cook straight from the store.
Storing Mussels:

Fresh mussels are alive, and you want to keep them that way. Dead ones aren't any good. The best way to store mussels is in the refrigerator, in the original mesh or net bag they came in, wrapped in a wet paper towel or even wet newspaper. The key is you want to keep them cold and wet. Do not store them in water or seal them up in a container or in a plastic bag — they need to be able to breathe. If you are not cooking them immediately when you come home, the best way to store them is in an unsealed container or tray with wet paper towels around them.
Using the methods described above, you can keep your mussels for 24 hours without a problem. In general, it's best to purchase your mussels the day you plan to use them.
 
Cleaning Mussels:
Most of the mussels you're likely to see at the seafood counter have dark blue, black or sometimes green shells. They may also have stringy little beards sticking out of their shells, which you should pull off or trim with kitchen shears.
 
Get rid of any mussels that are cracked, or that are open and don't shut by themselves when gently squeezed. Also, toss out any that are much lighter than the others. A good, fresh mussel should smell like the sea; toss out any that smell bad.