Mussels with Spinach
Moules aux Epinards
Region: France, Languedoc
Category: Vegetables
Season: Any
Difficulty: Easy but long cooking time

This rustic housewife's preparation has roots in the Ménagier de Paris, a French aide-memoire, a bourgeois household reminder book written at the end of the fourteenth century, where one finds mussels seasoned with saffron. But the mixture of mussels, saffron, and spinach is familiar in Languedoc where one home preparation is known as boui-abasisso d'espinarc, a spinach bouillabaisse that is finished with grated Gruyère cheese as in this recipe. If you were to make this preparation in Languedoc you would be told that your mussels should come from Bouzigues in the Étang de Thau.

[photo: Clifford A. Wright]

Yield: Makes 6 servings
Preparation Time: 3:30 hours in all

6 pounds mussels, de-bearded and thoroughly scrubbed     4 cups dry white wine     4 shallots (about 2 ounces), chopped     2 1/2 pounds spinach, tough stems removed, thoroughly washed       Pinch of saffron threads, crumbled     3 tablespoons tepid water

2 cups fish broth     2 tablespoons beurre manié (see note)     2 tablespoons unsalted butter       Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste     2 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated

1. Soak the mussels in cold water to cover for 2 hours to purge them of any grit. Pour 2 cups of the wine and half the shallots into a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the drained mussels and cook over medium-high heat until they have just opened, about 8 to 10 minutes, using a long handled wooden spoon to turn them. Remove the shells from the pot and begin removing the mussels from their shells. Set aside. Discard any mussels that remain tightly shut. Strain the mussel broth through a double thickness of cheesecloth to remove any lingering grit and set aside. You will have about 3 cups of mussel broth. If you don't, as may occur with cultivated mussels, add water to the existing broth to reach 3 cups.

2. Place the spinach leaves with only the water adhering to them from their last rinsing in a large pot, cover, and wilt over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes. Drain well by pressing the spinach in a strainer with the back of a wooden spoon. Chop coarsely, and set aside. Steep the saffron in the tepid water.

3. Place the remaining 2 shallots with the remaining 2 cups wine in a medium-size saucepan and reduce the wine by two-thirds over high heat. Tilt the pan occasionally to aid in the reduction and scrape down the sides with a wooden spoon. Add 1 1/ 2 cups of the mussel broth (freeze the rest for another use) and all of the fish broth. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 25 minutes.

4. Add the saffron and its soaking water and the beurre manié to the saucepan. Stir to mix well and continue to simmer over medium-low for another 40 minutes. Strain through a kitchen strainer. You should now have 1 cup of enriched sauce.

5. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. In a large skillet melt the butter over medium-high heat, add the spinach, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6. Transfer the spinach to the center of a baking pan. Surround the spinach with the mussels. Cover both with the saffron sauce and Gruyère. Place in the oven until the cheese is melted and some black specks appear, about 10 minutes, and serve very hot.

Variation: 

Note:  To make beurre manié mash together 2 tablespoons of room temperature unsalted butter with 2 tablespoons of flour until a paste.

Posted: 01/09/2007

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Drunken Mutton or Lamb