Rialto Restaurant & Bar

Mussels on grilled bread with red and green tomatoes

Makes 6 main course servings

Kosher salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped into ¼ inch dice

Freshly ground black pepper

4 tablespoons chopped garlic

1 tablespoon minced ginger

½ teaspoon fennel seeds

¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

1 pinch saffron

2 pounds green unripe tomatoes cut in half and charred under the broiler. Skin removed and meat chopped into ½ inch dice.

2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes cut in half and charred under the broiler. Skin removed and meat chopped into ½ inch dice.

4 tablespoons freshly chopped basil

6 thick slices rustic bread

100 mussels, scrubbed—super fresh and very much alive

½ cup white wine

 

Heat ¼ cup olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion, season with salt and pepper and cook 6 minutes, or until the onions are tender. Reduce the heat to low, add the garlic, ginger, fennel seeds, hot pepper flakes, saffron, and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the green tomatoes and 1 cup water, and cook 20 minutes. Add the charred red tomatoes and cook 10 minutes more. Remove from the heat. The sauce should be fairly thick.

Preheat a grill to 350°F. Grill each side of the bread slices until slightly charred. Brush with olive oil. Put each slice in the bottom of a large pasta bowl.

Heat a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the mussels and let them dance in the heat for a minute or two. Add the white wine and reduce to almost a glaze. Add the tomato sauce. Reduce the heat to medium, toss well and cover. Cook 5 minutes, or until the mussels have opened. Add the basil and toss well. Distribute the mussels and sauce among the 6 bowls. Serve immediately with more bread and an extra bowl for the shells. If you are up to it, serve a finger bowl after the mussels have been slurped up.