Recipe: East Coast Mussels

Having grown up in Maryland, seafood took up a hefty portion of our food pyramid. While at college in Idaho, I was this close to ordering steamed crabs from home to be shipped out. I was never a huge fan of the oyster, clam and mussel clan, but after trying this recipe, I fell in love with the savory dish, full of garlic and sweetened by wine. The best part of this recipe is that it take 10 minutes tops to throw together. Serve it with some crusty bread and the leftover wine and you've got yourself a meal.

I remember spending Sunday afternoons at my Grandad's river house, swimming off the pier until our fingers got wrinkled and then drying off and eating crabs. The saltiness of the river and the seasoning made the taste such a strong memory. 

When my Dad would make oyster soup, he made a cream base and would pick out the oysters so that us kids could have some soup with him. Of course, we added the oyster crackers, so basically we had cracker soup, but oh was it good.

There is this place in Baltimore called L. P. Steamers that has a rooftop deck overlooking the city. Its a divey bar restaurant, but the rooftop takes the cake. They haul trays of crab, steamed shrimp, hush puppies and everything else up three flights of outdoor stairs to your table. On a summer night, this felt like the epitome of fine dining:)

The first time I made mussels, we were newly married and I was (and still am) trying to figure out good dishes that my husband liked. I was so happy when he scraped the bowl clean with his bread. One more recipe added to my stash.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

All photos were taken by my lovely husband Horace on VSCOcam.

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