The Mussels from Hustles

The clouds passed slowly over our heads as we lay under the trees on a day of sunshine and showers. It was a strange feeling that had come over me that day as I reflected on the aftermath of a big decision. It was a decision that had, perhaps, upset some people but it was a decision in the fullness of time they would accept and understand. It was not something to be sad about. I thought of it as training for life in that if I want to excel in my future career I would need to make decisions that, like this one, were the right decision even if they did not please everybody.

Lying there with the Dogg and the picnic items sprawled beside me I felt an odd weightlessness and feeling of freedom. The chest pains that had troubled me the past few months had subsided and given way to a kind of content tiredness to put me on the right track. 

An old colleague of mine once said that when people feel challenged or in a sticky scape, they either head to the hills or the sea. One Saturday recently I headed to the hills and a couple of days later it would be the sea. In anticipation of this trip to the seaside, arranged by quietly hustling my first week's holiday since Christmas, I settled on a recipe involving seafood. In this case it was Mussels. 

The record of choice was the Fugees' 1996 classic "The Score". Although I have a few rap records in my collection, it's not a genre that I listen to a lot. However this album, like Tricky's Maxinquaye, is one that transcends the genre to be something special. One of the singles culled from the record was a cover of the classic "Killing me Softly". I have vivid memories of walking passed the common room of a prefabricated building at my old school sometime in 1996 and hearing that song belting out. It's a memory that's stuck with me ever since. If you're interested in listening then check out this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UfVr5Xib50 

The ingredients for this recipe are:

500 grams of shelled, cooked Mussels. 

2 Onions, topped, tailed and sliced widthways. 

5 fresh Basil Leaves.

3 cloves of Garlic, topped, tailed and sliced thinly. 

2 Tomatoes cut widthways into four pieces for each Tomato. 

1 head of Broccoli cut into pieces.

1 tablespoon of Corn Flour.

25 grams of dried Tarragon.

125 grams of Unsalted Butter.

2 cloves of Garlic cut thinly.

0.1 litre Unsweetened Soya Milk.

The method is as follows:

1. In a Le Cresceut or deep frying pan heat some Sunflower Oil  and fry the Onions and Garlic on a medium heat for ten minutes. 

2. Add the Mussels, Tomatoes and Basil Leaves and fry on a medium heat for another fifteen minutes. 

3. In the meantime steam the Brocolli for twenty-five minutes. 

4. Make the Sauce by melting the Butter in a saucepan and adding the Tarragon and Garlic and stewing for around 3 minutes. Add the Corn Flour and stir it in. Gradually add the Soya Milk, keep heating the Sauce and stir it in until you have a thick sauce. 

5. Serve and drizzle the Sauce liberally over the food. 

It was a hot night when I cooked this recipe and, despite mussels traditionally being rich, felt light and flavoursome thanks to the Fresh Basil and Broccoli while the sauce was not too over the top and sweet thanks to the Soya Milk. It got me in the right frame of mind for a day at the beach.