Mussels au gratin with Old Amsterdam

Ingredients

• 1 kilo of mussels
• 80 g carrot
• 60 g celery
• 60 g leek
• 1 bay leaf
• 50 g panko
• 1 garlic clove
• about 10 g of common parsley
• 30 g Old Amsterdam + a little extra
• 100 ml dry white wine
• extra virgin olive oil

Preparation

Put the panko in a bowl. Finely chop the parsley and add to the panko. Grate the garlic clove, cheese and add to panko. Then add the olive oil until you get a homogeneous mixture. Mix well. Season with plenty of freshly ground pepper. Wash the mussels with cold water. If there are any open mussels, tap the shell a couple of times lightly; If it closes, it is in good condition. If it is still open, discard it. Also remove excessively large or broken mussels. Put a large pot on the fire. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and fry the vegetables for about 5 minutes. Then pour the white wine and add the mussels. Stir everything well. Place the lid and let the mussels cook for about 3 minutes until they are done. Meanwhile, we do not remove the lid and occasionally shake the pot. Once they’re all open, they’re good to go. Remove the lid from the pot and let cool. Heat oven to 220 °C. Separate the upper part of the shell leaving only the part where the meat is located and place the shell with the mussel on the oven plate. If you prefer you can release them with a knife so that they are loose in the shell. Introduce some of the mixture for the gratin inside the shell of the mussel and garnish with a little extra cheese. Let au gratin for about 2 minutes until the cheese is well melted and the panko well browned. Do not leave them too long in the oven because they can become hard. If you want you can sprinkle the mussels with a pinch of chopped parsley.