From the Kitchen: Tomato Garlic Mussels

I have a confession...I love love to cook, but I'm not very adventurous.  Seafood is one of my favourite foods but I shy away at the seafood counter at the grocery store.  I'm very intimidated by the big tanks full of lobsters and oysters and scallops and other amazing creatures.  But I do like to push myself...so today at Superstore I lingered over the 2 lb bags of mussels, thinking it would be a nice belated birthday dinner for my sweetie.  I was excited to find a very simple recipe card sitting on the counter for these tomato garlic mussels, so I figured why not give it a try and share it with you!

Tomato Garlic Mussels

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 finely chopped onion
6 crushed garlic cloves
1 green or red pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1 tsp dried oregano
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 small tin tomato paste
2 cups of water
2 lbs of mussels
1 package angel hair pasta

Clean the mussels by rinsing them in water and scrubbing them to remove any grit.  Discard any mussels that are not tightly closed, these are duds.

In a saute pan, heat oil then add onion, garlic, pepper and mushrooms.  Cook for 10 minutes until veggies are tender.  Meanwhile, cook angel hair pasta separately according to box directions.

Stir in oregano, tomatoes and tomato paste and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until sauce starts to thicken.  In a separate pan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil over high heat and add mussels.  Cover and steam them for 5 minutes or until mussels open. 

Drain water then add mussels to tomato garlic sauce.  Serve over angel hair pasta with crusty bread and a side salad.

 So it didn't turn out to be as scary as I thought and soooo delicious.

Bon appetit mes amies!