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French Mussel Bisque

Source of Recipe

From "Barefoot Contessa: How Easy is That?" by Ina Garten


Recipe Introduction

"While this isn't the easiest recipe in the book to make, it's really not difficult; with a little scrubbing and chopping, you have a divine soup. The mussels make a delicious broth flavored with white wine, spicy saffron, and lots of vegetables like leeks, carrots, and onions."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 (750-ml) bottle dry white wine, divided
â—¦ 3 pounds fresh mussels, cleaned
â—¦ 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) butter
â—¦ 1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion (2 onions)
â—¦ 1 large leek, white and light green parts, cleaned and chopped
â—¦ 2 carrots, chopped
â—¦ 4 teaspoons minced garlic (4 cloves)
â—¦ ½ teaspoon saffron threads
â—¦ Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
â—¦ 4 whole canned plum tomatoes, chopped
â—¦ 1 ½ cups half-and-half
â—¦ 1 cup heavy cream
â—¦ 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley or dill


Recipe

Bring 1 ½ cups water and 1 cup of the wine to a boil in a large, shallow pot. Add the mussels, cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the mussels open. When the mussels are cool enough to handle, separate the mussels from the shells and set aside, discarding the shells and any mussels that didn't open. Strain the cooking liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a bowl and reserve.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in another large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onions, leek, carrots, garlic, saffron, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute.

Add 2 cups of the reserved cooking liquid (discard the rest) and the rest of the wine, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Add the reserved mussels, the half-and-half, and the cream. Heat until just heated through but not boiling. Stir in the parsley or dill, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Serve hot.

Serves 6