Cozze e Pecorino (Mussels and Pecorino) | A Great Pairing

copyright 2013 Maria Liberati/ Art of Living,PrimaMedia,Inc.

A beautiful sunny August day. I woke up this morning with  a Focaccia  on my mind, specifically a  Focaccia Pugliese  ( A delicious memory from my trip to Lecce in Puglia) but instead ..got bombarded with so many ingredients and sidetracked so to speak….

The warning is don’t ever go food  shopping with Italian architects and chefs together..so many recipes and dishes coming at you…especially at a fresh market full of local seafood, produce, spices… At 8:30 AM I was driven and accompanied to the market to get a bag of flour and some olives and came back with ingredients for….patata (potatoes) al forno (roasted) with organic rosemary from the garden..cacio e pepe (Pasta with pecorino cheese  and black pepper)..Cozze e Pecorino (Mussels and Pecorino cheese)..pizza..crostata… Local Pecorino cheese made right here in Abruzzo…peppers to  sautee in some locally produced  white wine..not sure when I am going to make all these things,.but the cozze (mussels) were local and fresh so I had to choose that as my Pranzo (lunch) dish… focaccia Pugliese will have to wait for another day..although I now have all the ingredients for it…and I have returned at 12:30 PM ( 4 hours food shopping at a local market only 10 minutes away)..and the obsession for food..that is good food continues..such a contradiction when the subject of food enters all work stops..and concentration is on the food….
The absolutely necessary ingredients for this dish are an excellent dry white Italian wine (Pecorino, Trebbiano D’Abruzzo) and fresh Mussels, extra virgin cold pressed olive oil and of course the Pecorino Cheese  from Abruzzo..
But hurry make it before summer’s gone and get some fresh local mussels if possible..
Cozze e Pecorino (Mussels and Pecorino)

2 lbs fresh mussels, washed and cleaned
15 cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
handful freshly chopped parsley
4 cloves fresh garlic
1 pound freshly made spaghetti or tagliolini pasta
1/4 cup pecorino cheese or to taste
Clean the mussels or have them cleaned at your market if possible (much easier). Place olive oil and garlic in a large pan and when garlic becomes golden, place in mussels.Add in 1/2 cup of dry white wine. Saute for 15 minutes. Remove and discard  mussels that have not opened up.   Wash and cut cherry tomatoes into quarters and place into mussels, add in freshly chopped parsley. Let saute for another 5 minutes.  Cook pasta as directed and when finished, add into mussels and saute for 2 minutes, remove any extra liquid. Remove from heat.Grate pecorino cheese on the top and some black pepper. Gently stir. Serve hot..with a glass of dry white wine….
**See you at Seattle Washington’s Festa Italiana on Sept 28,29th
For more great recipes get  a copy of  the Gourmand World Award Winning book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition