Despite the blistering winds, the sun was shining yesterday and we headed out as a family to theNewburyport Farmer’s Market. It was our first trip to the market this season and it did not disappoint! This year the market has added Community Supported Fisheries to their line up of fantastic vendors. We were thrilled to find Carolyn Eastman of Eastman’s Fish Market who was selling lovely fresh mussels at only $3.00 a lbs.
We are a family of 5 so we purchased 2 bags, which was just over 4 lbs. They were black and shiny and smelled of the ocean, when we went to clean them we found very few beards (the sandy stringy fibers that are used by mussels to hold onto surfaces such as rocks). Carolyn had told us that the mussels were purchased from J.P.’s Shellfish where the mussels were harvested from wild beds on the coast of Maine.
Carolyn explained that all of the seafood that she brings to the market is caught fresh either right off her husband’s commercial boat, from known distributors, or their “friends” boats. Talk about getting to know your farmer! We love this idea of Carolyn asking friends what is fresh and gathering up a variety of fresh seafood to bring to the market. We also like the idea that Carolyn and her husband Ed are true partners in a business that is not only sustaining their family, but our environment. You can see Carolyn weekly at the Newburyport Farmer’s Market and purchase whatever she has on hand. BUT, be warned she runs out quickly and if you aren’t a CFA shareholder its first come first served. To guarantee that you will get fish that week, you may want to sign up for a share of Eastman’s Local Catch you can buy a 1lb, 2lb, or 4lb share that will buy you 6 full weeks of fresh fish. Your share of fish will arrive at the market filleted and ready for your pick up weekly. Carolyn also adds if you can’t make the market and want to pick up from their shop in Seabrook you can do so if you make arrangements to do so prior to the market. Supporting a local CFA like Eastmans helps both the fishermen and environmental causes at one time. Carolyn explains “When the fishermen go out and know that no matter what species they catch they will get the same price per pound it allows them to not have to try to over fish the more popular varieties.” She ads, “Half the cost of each of our shares goes directly to the fisherman. In practical terms, this means that the fisherman don’t have to over fish. They load up the boat with just what they need because they know both how much per pound the fish will be sold for as well as how much money they will make from each pound.” We here atNewburyport-Today are super impressed with this. Plus we L-O-V-E-D our mussels.
We picked up some garlic chives from Middle Earth Farm, and fresh flat leaf parsley from Arrowhead Farm who also had some beautiful oak leaf lettuce we used for a salad. Below is our recipe for steamed mussels. We recommend serving with a crusty baguette (for sopping up the sauce). We got ours at Grand Trunk Imports along with a great bottle of white and some cheese to snack on while we cooked!
Steamed Mussels with Heavenly Broth
Rinse mussels under cool water, remove any beards and discard any opened, cracked, or foul smelling mollusks.
Ingredients:
Mussels
3 TBSP Olive Oil
Garlic Chives
1 bunch flat leaf parsley
4 cloves of fresh garlic
1 cup of white wine
3/4 of a stick of butter
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Method:
Coarsely chop 4 cloves of garlic, the bulbs and stems of 3 garlic chives, and half a bunch of flat leaf parsley.
Heat the olive oil in a deep pot and then add the garlic, garlic chives and parsley. Cook until lightly browned and fragrant. Add the white wine and then the cleaned mussels. Cover tightly and steam until mussels open. The cooking time will vary depending on size of pot, size of mussels, and the heat of your stove, ours took just about 2 minutes. Turn off heat.
Remove opened mussels and plate in shallow bowls for serving. Add the butter to the hot pan in pats so it melts quickly. Coarsley chop the other half of the parsley and add to the butter mixture with along with the juice of 1/2 a lemon. Ladle sauce over the mussels and serve with a green salad.
