Lunch With Mussel

This wonderful lunch menu comes from Nancy and Kaspar Donier of the popular Seattle restaurant Kaspar’s. It starts with an inviting salad of mixed organic greens with dried apples, Gorgonzola cheese and creamy ginger dressing. The dressing is so tasty that the generous yield of the recipe is not a problem; serve it as a dip with crudites, on shredded carrot, sliced English cucumber or Waldorf-type salads. Kaspar dries thin apple slices, tosses in a little sugar and fresh minced ginger, arranges a single layer on a greased parchment paper-lined baking sheet, then puts the whole thing in a 200-degree oven. As a shortcut alternative, crisp dried apples can be found in health food stores and in health food sections of supermarkets.

For the entree, mussels are cooked in a flavorful curry-lemongrass mixture that enhances the shellfish without overwhelming them. Buy mussels with tightly closed shells or those that snap shut when tapped, otherwise they’re not alive and fresh.

Smaller mussels will be more tender than larger ones. Farmed mussels are easy to clean. Once they are washed and beards removed, this is an easy and delicious dish. Be sure to serve crusty bread to sop up the luscious broth.

A perfect ending for this and almost any meal is a dessert ofpears with a light dusting of powdered sugar and shortbread cookies. If the pears are hard, they should be poached first in a sugar syrup flavored with a cinnamon stick. Otherwise, the pears can be peeled and quartered and placed directly in the sauce well before serving. The pears will discolor slightly even with plastic wrap closely covering them, but this discoloration isn’t a big problem.

MIXED GREENS WITH DRIED APPLES, GORGONZOLA AND CREAMY GINGER DRESSING

CREAMY GINGER DRESSING 1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3 1/2 tablespoons grated gingerroot

1/4 cup chopped red onion

Dash cayenne pepper

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 1/4 cups oil

6 tablespoons cider vinegar

SALAD

8 cups lightly packed mixed organic greens, rinsed, crisped

1 cup dried apple slices

1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

CREAMY GINGER DRESSING Put egg, mustard, ginger, onion, cayenne pepper, honey, salt and ground pepper in food processor fitted with metal blade or blender. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds.

With motor running, alternately and gradually add oil and vinegar until combined. Adjust seasonings and vinegar to taste. Dressing can be stored up to 2 weeks in refrigerator, covered airtight. Stir well before using.

SALAD Put greens and apple slices in large bowl. Toss with 3/4 to 1 cup dressing. Divide between 4 chilled salad plates. Garnish each with 2 tablespoons cheese. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings. Dressing makes 2 cups, enough for 8 to 10 servings.

Each serving of salad, with dressing, contains about:

423 calories; 557 mg sodium; 39 mg cholesterol; 41 grams fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 1.04 grams fiber.

Each 1-tablespoon serving of Creamy Ginger Dressing contains about:

82 calories; 78 mg sodium; 7 mg cholesterol; 9 grams fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.02 gram fiber.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH CURRY AND LEMONGRASS

1 cup dry white wine

1 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon minced shallots

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely chopped lemongrass, light-colored stalk only

1 1/2 pounds mussels, about 45 to 60, cleaned

1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onion

Unsalted butter

Freshly ground pepper

Put wine, cream, shallots, garlic, curry and lemon grass in nonaluminum pot large enough to hold mussels. Bring mixture to boil. Add mussels. Simmer over medium-high heat, covered, until all mussels are opened, about 4 minutes.

To serve, use slotted spoon to transfer mussels to 4 warm serving bowls. Add green onion, butter and pepper to taste to sauce. Adjust seasonings to taste. Stir until combined. Spoon over mussels, dividing evenly. Serve hot.

Note: To clean mussels, if mussels are not farmed and are loaded with sand, place in large bowl, cover with salted cold water and soak 1/2 hour. Then drain. Pull off beards. If beards resist, snip off with kitchen shears. Transfer mussels to colander. Rinse thoroughly with cold water. Discard any broken shells or mussels that remain open when tapped on side of sink. Can be prepared to this point several hours ahead and refrigerated.

Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains:

424 calories; 515 mg sodium; 138 mg cholesterol; 29 grams fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 22 grams protein; 0.07 gram fiber.

BARTLETT PEARS FOSTER

A LA MODE

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons rum, brandy or whiskey

1 cup whipping cream

4 ripe but firm Bartlett pears, peeled, cored, quartered lengthwise

4 scoops vanilla ice cream

4 mint sprigs

Heat butter and sugar in 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Cook until color of peanut butter, about 3 minutes, shaking pan occasionally.

Add rum and cream. Simmer until sugar is dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add pears. Shake pan to coat pears. Can be made several hours ahead to this point. Cover pears tightly with plastic wrap. Let stand at room temperature.

To serve, simmer until heated through, about 3 minutes. Place 4 quarters of pears on each warm shallow dessert plate. Top with vanilla ice cream and sauce. Garnish with mint sprig. Serve warm.

Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

462 calories; 52 mg sodium; 105 mg cholesterol; 29 grams fat; 47 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 2.33 grams fiber.