Pasta with seafood and vongole (venus mussels)

Ingredients:

1/2 leek (poree)
2 stalks celery
1 onion
5 cloves garlic
800 g fresh venus mussels
350 g scampi (Prawns)
1/2 l White wine (Gewürztramine – a Süd Tirol wine)
Provence Herbs (Kräuter du Provence )
200 ml water
bundle Petersil
Chillies (optional)

Method:

Wash the mussels thoroughly in cold water, making sure that all sand residues are washed away.Throw away any which is opened or broken. Wash the prawns, if the head disturbs you, cut off just the nose with a scissor, but leave the eyes on it. I usually leave it whole as it makes a great soup with the heads. Slice poree, onions, celery, slice garlic finely. Heat a big pot with generous olive oil and fry onions, then garlic till brown. Add the celery, and poree, fry for about 3-4 mins. Add a dash of wine , and cook till almost dry. Now add the tomatoes, stir generously. Add the rest of the wine + simmer for 15 mins. Add a dash of Provence herbs + chilli. (Optional, if you don`t like it spicy.) Add salt + pepper to taste. Once your soup is ready, add the mussels and the prawns. Stir once and cover the pot. Cook softly for another 10 mins.

In the mean time, boil water for the noodles. Once the noodles are ready, drain and put it back into the pot. Add olive oil. Serve the noodles together with the mussels, giving each a generous portion of sauce.