Prawn & mussel pies
The openness of these soupy prawn & mussel pies means that the light pastry doesn’t mask the flavour of the mussels and prawns.
Ingredients
½ x 375g pack ready-rolled puff pastry
150ml/¼pt white wine
1kg/2lb 4oz mussels in their shells, cleaned and debearded
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
4 sticks celery, sliced
1 star anise
1 strip peeled orange zest
2 bay leaves
pinch saffron
juice ½ lemon
200-250g punnet cherry tomatoes, halved
pinch cayenne pepper or crushed dried chillies
350g/12oz peeled Atlantic prawns
25g-50g/1-2oz butter, to taste
chopped parsley
Method
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Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Lay the pastry (a piece about 18cm x 23cm) on a lightly floured surface. Cut into 4 rectangles (see Gary’s tip, below). Place on a baking sheet and bake for about 15 mins until golden and puffy.
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Meanwhile, pour the wine and 450ml/16fl oz water (see Gary’s tip below) into a large, deep pan and bring to a boil. Tip in the cleaned mussels and cover with a lid. After a couple of mins, remove the lid and stir the mussels until they open. Any refusing to open should be discarded. Drain the mussels in a colander, saving the juices. Remove the mussels from the shells, keeping some shells if you like, to use when serving the soup.
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Warm the olive oil in the pan, then add the sliced onion, celery, star anise, orange zest, bay leaves, saffron and lemon juice. Cook over a moderate heat without colouring the vegetables, stirring occasionally, until completely tender, 12-15 mins.
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Strain the mussel cooking liquor through a fine sieve over the vegetables, and bring to a simmer. Add the tomatoes, season with a pinch of cayenne pepper or crushed chillies and simmer for a few mins to soften the tomatoes. Spoon the mussels and prawns into the soup, stir in your preferred quantity of butter and heat to just below simmering point – you don’t want to overcook the fish. Sprinkle in some chopped parsley to finish, and serve in bowls with a pastry lid perched on top of each.
