Six months, and still so happy!

For our six-month anniversary, Fred and I stayed in and dined on mussels, double-cream Camembert and a baguette, washed down with white wine. Perfection! Here's an estimation of the calories, etc. Leave out the butter for a much healthier meal!

Mussels are SO easy to prepare, and they're so delicious. Make sure you keep them cold (preferably on ice) when you get them home. Then give them a good scrub and remove the barb (the stringy part that might be sticking out). Do this just before you cook them because this will kill the mussel. (Yes, they're still alive.) Discard any cracked or damaged/open shells.

In your largest pasta pot, saute 1/2 white onion, chopped or 2 shallots, chopped in 1 T olive oil over medium heat. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes and a garlic clove, chopped. After two minutes, add a cup of white wine and let it come to a boil. Add the mussels, give them a stir and put on the lid. After abot 30 seconds, give them another stir. Within a minute, the mussels should be open. Drain the juices and put the mussels on a platter. (Throw out any closed mussels; they were dead and not safe to eat.) Strain the pan juices (there could be grit or sand from the mussels) and pour them back into the pot. Add 1 T butter and stir until it melts. Pour the sauce over the mussels and throw a handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley over the top. Serve with baguette. Eat with a loved one.