Up at beautiful Log Haven restaurant in Millcreek Canyon, chef Dave Jones makes an appetizer that I love. It’s a hearty dish of clams in a spicy broth with chorizo slices and grilled rustic bread to soak up the delicious broth. This recipe is my attempt to replicate Dave’s delicious dish using mussels instead of clams. Give it a try!

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 1/2 to 2 oz. Spanish chorizo, thinly sliced (Note: make sure you’re using cured, Spanish chorizo, which has a salami-like consistency, not raw Mexican-style chorizo.) You could also substitute Portuguese linguica.

2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 shallot, peeled and minced

1/2 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 tsp. fennel seeds

1 tsp. cracked black pepper

2-4 lbs. black mussels, cleaned and debearded (figure on about a pound per person as a main serving)

2 Tbs. minced Italian parsley

Method:

Using a large heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chorizo slices and sizzle, stirring occasionally, until the slices begin to get brown and crispy.

Add the garlic, shallot and fennel seeds to the pot and cook until softened a little.

Pour the wine into the pot along with the tomatoes and black pepper. Bring the wine to a simmer.

Simmer the wine until it’s reduced by about half.

Add the mussels to the pot and stir well. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mussels have all opened, 6 to 8 minutes. Discard any mussels that don’t open.

Sprinkle the parsley onto the mussels and serve with some of the broth. Grilled or toasted slices of rustic-style bread or French fries make a great accompaniment.