One of the earliest culinary memories I have was of vacationing with my parents in the little beach town of Cambria, CA. Our vacation house was right on the beach, and every morning I would wait for the low-tide so I could go exploring all the really cool tide pools. I always found every sort of sea lifeimaginable from starfish, sea urchins and even an abalone every now and then, but one morning I stumbled upon what would from then on out be referred to as "Mussel Rock." Mussel Rock was only accessable during the lowest of low tides, and was literally covered with beautiful pacific black mussels. I found them interesting at the time, though I really had no idea that they could in fact be eaten as food until I took a couple to show my Dad. He asked if there were more and if so, how many. I told him that there were tons and he proceeded to ask me to go gather about ten of the biggest ones I could find so I grabbed my beach-combing bucket and pocket-knife and went back out. When I got back to the house about twenty minutes later, my Dad was in the kitchen chopping garlic. He had a pan already set up to cook and then he showed me how to clean the mussels. I asked him what we were going to do with them, and he said "We're going to eat them for breakfast." Intrigued that you could even eat those weird-looking things, I decided to watch and learn. After they were cleaned, Dad sauteed them with some garlic, some white wine and a little bit of butter. I watched in amazement as one by one, they started to open. When they were fully cooked, my Dad offered me one and I apprehensively popped it into my mouth thinking it was going to be disgusting. Instantly, my tastebuds were hit with what I can only describe as what the flavor of the ocean might be plus butter! It reminded me of eating garlic bread-sticks while being sprayed in the face with a crashing wave. It was an incredible new flavor I'd never had before and Dad and I sat there that morning and ate the whole batch while watching the tide roll in. Every summer after that, I would make the early morning trip out to Mussel Rock almost every day to catch breakfast, and it quicklyturned into a family tradition of eating fresh Pacific mussels for breakfast. Unfortunately, Cambria is now a protected beach and taking ANY form of wildlife from the ocean is considered poaching and punishable by severe fines. I respect the new rules, but I miss the days when I could crawl out onto a wet rock and grab the most delicious breakfast I can ever remember. I would say that those mussels with my Dad were the spark that got me interested in food and cooking. That one little shellfish changed my life forever...


1 lb Live Greenlip or Pacific Mussels
1/2 cup White Wine
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. butter
1 cup Chicken or Vegetable Stock
6 Cloves Minced Garlic
1/4 cup Finely Diced White Onion or Shallots
1/4 cup Chopped Green Onion or Leeks
2 tbsp. Fresh Basil
1 tsp. Saffron Threads (appr. 30 threads)
1/2 tsp. Celery Salt

Yields four servings

Clean the mussels thoroughly using a hard-bristled brush until the "beard" is removed. Discard any mussels that are dead or broken. Next, Saute the garlic and white onions or shallots in the olive oil until golden and deglaze the pan with the white wine and stock. Add the green onion or leeks and reduce by half. Add the mussels, celery salt, saffron and fresh basil and cook covered until the mussels start to open (about 3-5 minutes). Remove the cooked mussels to a plate and whisk the butter into the cooking liquid. Pour over the mussels and serve immediately with fresh-baked bread.