A Mussel Soup with Watercress

A Mussel Soup with Watercress

Start with the preparation of Mussels Mariniere and use ½ of the steaming liquid and ½ of the mussels for this soup.

½ cup small-dice onion

½ cup small-dice fennel

½ cup small-dice celery

½ cup small-dice leeks with green part

1 sprig of Italian parsley

Butter

Steaming Liquid

2 lb Mussels

2 bunches watercress, stems discarded, washed and roughly chopped

½ Cup Heavy Cream

3 cloves of garlic

Salt

Cayenne pepper

Fresh ground pepper

1-2 cups of chicken stock

Remove mussel meat from shells after steaming them in accordance with the Mussels Mariniere recipe. Set mussels aside, covered. In a medium saucepan, sweat 1 tablespoon of butter with onions, fennel, garlic, celery, parsley and leeks for 7-10 minutes. Pour in reserved mussel broth and chicken stock. Lower heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Stir in watercress and remove the pot from the heat and let stand for 3 minutes. Transfer soup to the blender. Blend the soup until it is purred and then push it through a fine-mesh sieve. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne. Just before serving add the cream to the soup and finish with another 2 tablespoons of butter. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top each serving with some mussels.