Creamy Mussels and Cider
With smoky bacon, fresh herbs and garlic ciabatta. Simple and delicious, the cider and herbs make an amazingly fragrant sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 kg Spring Bay blue mussels
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1/2 bunch fresh tarragon
- 4 rashers smoked streaky bacon
- extra virgin olive oil
- 150 ml quality cider
- 2 tbsp fat-free natural yoghurt
- ground black pepper
Garlic ciabatta
- 1 loaf ciabatta or rustic bread
- 1 clove garlic peeled in half
- extra virgin olive oil
Garnish
- Lots of crusty garlic ciabatta
- Extra herbs & bacon
- Micro chervil
Instructions
- Peel and finely slice the garlic, pick and roughly chop the herbs, and finely slice the bacon.
- Heat a few tbsp of olive oil in a large pan on a high heat and fry the bacon until golden and crispy, stirring regularly. Remove the bacon and set aside, leave any excess fat in the pan.
- Tip the mussels into the hot pan with the garlic, cider and a few tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Cover with a lid and let steam for 3-5 minutes, or until the mussels have opened and are plump, juicy and delicious, shaking the pan occasionally.
- When all of the mussels have opened, they’re ready – transfer them to a platter, leaving the juices behind in the pan.
- Stir the yoghurt into the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add most of the herbs and a little of the bacon, then season with some black pepper.
- Slice the bread 2cm thick, then toast under a hot grill. Take the toasted ciabatta and rub the hot toasts all over with the raw garlic, then drizzle lightly with extra virgin olive oil.
- To serve, pour the sauce over the mussels, scatter over the remaining herbs and bacon, add some chervil, arrange the toasted garlic ciabatta around the edge of the platter and tuck in.
