Ingredients

• 20-24 fresh mussels in shell
• 1 cup water
• 1 bayleaf (optional)
• dash oil
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
• ½ leek or 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 x 560 gram can concentrated pumpkin or pumpkin orange soup
• sour cream and chopped parsley to garnish

Method

1. Discard any mussels that are open. Scrub and remove the beards. Bring water and bayleaf to the boil, add the mussels, cover and boil for 5 minutes. Drain, cool and set aside.
2. In a saucepan heat the oil and gently cook the celery, carrot, leek or onion and curry powder for about 3-5 minutes until the vegetables are softened but not browned.
3. Make the concentrated canned soup up as directed on the can (by adding water or milk) and stir into the saucepan. Bring to a simmer.
4. Discard any mussels that have not opened. Reserve 4 to 8 mussels for garnishing. Remove the meat from the remaining shells and chop roughly. Add the chopped mussels to the soup and warm through.
5. Ladle into warm soup bowls and garnish each with a dollop of sour cream, some chopped parsley and a mussel or two in the half shell.

Cooks Tips

If using a non-concentrate soup variety, then use 2 cans.