Mussels in White Wine Broth

Shallots and garlic sauteed with butter

Since it was a very special occasion, I thought it would be appropriate/sweet to prepare mussels two ways.  It was quite effortless as well to make this since I had many ingredients on hand and already chopped the garlic and parsley.  My biggest mistake was with the actual allotment of wine.  Less is more in this case! I had approximately another cup of wine still left in the bottle so I had poured the entire thing in the saucepan.   I timed the mussels to boil for only five minutes to make sure they didn't get too overcooked and rubbery, but as a result, I didn't boil off the additional alcohol from the wine.  Next time, I will definitely stick to only using the appropriate amount. 

Mussels in Chardonnay w/ toasted bread

Ingredients
(yields 2 servings)
5 cloves of garlic
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons of butter
5 shallots
1/4 cup of fresh parsley
2 lbs of frozen mussels
2 cups of Chardonnay (any dry white wine will do)
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

Directions
1) Rinse and scrub mussels under cold water.
2) Remove beards using a scissor
3) In a large saucepan, heat butter over medium heat and cook garlic for about 3 minutes.
4) Combine wine, shallots, tomatoes, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes into the pan.
5) Add mussels. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered, stirring once, 5 minutes or until shells open.
6) In separate bowls, garnish with fresh parsley. 
7) Serve with toasted bread for dipping.