“Muscoli Ripieni alla Spezzina” is a typical dish from the Gulf of Poets. It consists of local mussels (muscoli) stuffed with garlic, chopped seasonings, milk-drenched breadcrumbs, Parmesan, eggs and mortadella.
The muscoli are farmed in the Gulf of Poets, and are one of the gastronomic symbols of the eastern Italian Riviera in the province of La Spezia.
In Portovenere’s Palmaria Restaurant, the Chefs propose a revisited version of the classic recipe. Instead of filling the mussels, the ingredients are assembled individually on the plate, yet the result is an explosion of Mediterranean flavors.
Recipe
Ingredients for 4 people
- Muscoli from La Spezia 1 kg
- Datterini tomatoes 300 gr
- Mortadella di Bologna 80 gr in a single slice
- Sliced toast bread 150 gr
- 1 garlic clove
- Parsley 30 gr
- Soy Lecithin 20 gr
- Salt
- Extra virgin olive oil
In a saucepan, lightly fry an unpeeled clove of garlic. Then add the previously-cleaned mussels and cook them for a few minutes with the lid on, until they have opened. Set aside the muscoli and the cooking water.
In a different pan, cook the datterini tomatoes after cutting them into small pieces, along with a trickle of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Then add the cooking water of the mussels and emulsify with a hand blender, adding extra virgin olive oil.
Brunoise the slice of mortadella and toast the bread in the oven or in a pan with olive oil and salt.
Emulsify the parsley with the soy lecithin.
Compose the dish by placing the datterini sauce on the bottom, then the shelled mussels, the mortadella and the emulsified parsley.
Buon appetito!
For the classic version
Here is the classic recipe for “Muscoli Ripieni alla Spezzina”.
