Starter for a Christmas menu

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If you want to prepare not just one dish but a Christmas menu for Christmas, you basically need at least three courses; these are the starter, main course and dessert. It is practical if the starter can be prepared well and then only has to be in the oven for a few minutes.

A small portion of mussels is the perfect starter.
A small portion of mussels is the perfect starter.

Ingredients:

  • 20 fresh mussels with shell
  • 1/2 slice of fresh white bread
  • 200 ml of dry white wine
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley
  • 50 g butter at room temperature
  • 40 g ground almonds
  • salt and pepper

If your Christmas menu consists of at least three courses, the starter must by no means be too generous. The following recipe is therefore intended for four to five people.

Clams au gratin - this is how you prepare the starter

  1. Scrub the clams under as cold a thing as possible water vigorously while removing the beard. Mussels that have already been opened are not OK; You should dispose of them.
  2. Measure three tablespoons of the white wine and place them in a small bowl. The rest Wine fill in a large saucepan and place the mussels in it.
  3. Cover the mussels (!) And cook them over high heat until the shells have opened. You shake the pot back and forth over and over again. After about 5 minutes check it out; all bowls should now have opened. If there are still many closed, add another one or two minutes. After that, those that are still closed must be disposed of. Unfortunately, you have to assume that they are bad.
  4. Take the mussels out of the pot and let them cool.
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    Mussels are rich in protein and hardly contain any fat. They are therefore low in calories. …

Prepare the mixture for gratinating

While the mussels are cooking, prepare the mass for gratinating.

  1. Debark the white bread and cut it into fine cubes. Put these in the bowl with the white wine and soak them briefly.
  2. Peel and chop the garlic and finely chop the parsley leaves. Then knead both with the soft butter. Squeeze the white bread cubes well and add them together with the ground almonds, knead everything carefully and season the mixture with salt and pepper.
  3. Now break off the upper shells of the cooked, cooled mussels and place the opened mussels side by side on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.

If you want, you can now treat yourself to a little break or prepare the other courses of your Christmas menu.

Start the Christmas menu

When all guests have arrived, you can continue with the preparation of the starter.

  1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius.
  2. Knead the gratin mixture again, season it with salt and pepper if necessary and distribute it thinly on the clam halves.
  3. Once the oven is preheated, slide the tray onto the middle rack and bake the mussels for about 5 to 6 minutes. You're done when the crust is golden brown.

Serve Keep the starter as hot as possible and serve with some fresh white bread or baguette.

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