In this installment
Spicy Mussels
Rosette de Lyon
Spicy Mussels
These mussels comes to us via Patagonia Provisions, the same folks behind Patagonia the clothing company that does good things in this world and tries to show that you can run a business and make money without depleting the natural world. Mussels are sustainable and good for the environment on many levels. They filter and clean the seawater around them, leaving things better than when they found it. And their life cycle is pretty fast too, all things considered. So harvesting mussels is a regular, sustainable process that doesn’t take anything out of the ecosystem (besides harmful things) in which they reside. These mussels were harvested off the coasts of Spain and Portugal. They’re brought to shore, cleaned, steamed and mixed with a slightly spicy sauce before being canned and preserved.
Open the tin and serve with good crusty bread or make some pasta and toss the whole tin with the cooked noodles and a “plain” tomato sauce. Add whatever veggies make sense and serve.
Rosette de Lyon Salami
Rosette de Lyon is a classic French salami that’s popular with everyone that tastes it because of its straightforward, honest, unadulterated flavors. To me, it’s a benchmark salami. Every deli counter that carries salami should have at least one version of Rosette de Lyon amongst their offerings if not more.
This one comes to us from our friends at Smoking Goose in Indianapolis, Indiana. They source heirloom breeds of pork from surrounding farms (this one comes from Gunthorp Farms, which are also friends of ours coincidentally). The coarse ground pork is mixed with very few ingredients, chief among them red wine, garlic and black pepper…that’s about it. You’ll taste the garlic a little, but that’s muted by the red wine and the black pepper gives a slight kick at the end. But what you’ll really taste is the quality and flavor of the pork. It’s already sliced and ready to enjoy, so do just that! Enjoy it!