Maurice Bloch

Paris, France
Here is a recipe for Sid...actually it is inherited from my Bordeaux grandmother.

How not to overcook mussels

1. Put the washed mussels on a hot surface until they begin to open.

2. Take off the top shell and leave the mussel on the half shell pouring the liquid from each mussel into a saucepan. (You may burn your fingers a bit but that is anticipatory atonement for gluttony.)

3. In the same saucepan pile the muscles on the half shells on top of each other.

4. Add pepper, 100 grams of butter and the juice of a lemon.

5. Put on a very gentle heat so that the butter melts and, ultimately, the juice boils. This conjunction causes a froth which covers all the mussels and fills the half shells.

6. Remove from the heat immediately.

7. Eat.