Mussels with Cider & Bacon

Mussels with Cider & Bacon Recipe Flavored with apple cider and sage, these steamed mussels are the perfect meal for a cool fall night. Soak up the sauce with your favorite rustic whole-grain bread.


From EatingWell:  The Simple Art of EatingWell

Yield: 4 servings

Active Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • 4 slices bacon, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 1/2 cups apple cider
  • 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 4 pounds mussels, cleaned (see Tip)

Preparation

  1. Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring, until starting to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; pour off the fat from the pan and wipe out any remaining fat.
  2. Add oil to the pan and heat over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until just starting to brown, 30 seconds to 4 minutes.
  3. Add cider, vinegar, sage, salt and pepper; bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in mussels. Cover and cook just until the mussels have opened, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat (discard any unopened mussels). Stir in the bacon. Serve with the sauce from the pan.

Tips & Notes
  • Tip: When shopping for mussels, look for ones that are closed—or those open only a fraction of an inch. When you get them home, store them in a large bowl with a few damp paper towels on top for up to 1 day. To clean them, discard mussels with broken shells or whose shell remains open after you tap it. Hold mussels under running water and use a stiff brush to remove any barnacles; pull off any black fibrous “beards”. (Some mussels may not have a beard.) Mussels should be “debearded” no more than 30 minutes before cooking.

Nutrition Per serving:

281 calories; 13 g fat (2 g sat, 7 g mono); 42 mg cholesterol; 23 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 18 g protein; 1 g fiber; 527 mg sodium; 310 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Iron (25% daily value), Vitamin C (23% dv), Folate (15% dv)

1 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 fruit, 2 lean meat, 2 fat

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