Greek is the WORD

Take a trip to the Mediterranean with dishes made with big flavours and fresh ingredients

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Steamed mussels with ouzo & fennel

SERVES 4

1kg fresh live mussels

60g butter

1 fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, thinly sliced (reserve any fronds to serve)

4-5 spring onions, thinly sliced

3-4 garlic cloves, peeled, thinly sliced

2 bay leaves

100ml ouzo

3-4 small thyme sprigs

Zest of 1 small lemon

3-4 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Freshly ground black pepper, to season

Toasted bread, to serve

1 Wash mussels to remove any dirt or grit. If any mussels are open, tap them on the counter - if they close, they're alive; if they remain open, discard them.

2 Place a large, shallow pot or deep pan with a well-fitting lid over medium heat.

3 Add half the butter to pot and, once hot, add sliced fennel bulb, onions, garlic and bay leaves. Cook until veges start to soften.

4 Pour ouzo into pot and add the remaining butter.

5 When everything starts to simmer, add mussels and thyme. Immediately cover pot and let mussels simmer for 2 minutes.

6 Without removing the lid, shake pot to move mussels around. Cook for a further 1 minute before repeating this process (total cooking time should be about 6 minutes).

7 Take off the lid and mix mussels well in the cooking liquid in the pan. Check to make sure all the mussels have opened. Discard any unopened mussels.

8 Add lemon zest, parsley and plenty of black pepper, then cover the pot and shake again.

9 Transfer mussels to a deep serving platter and spoon over the sauce along with cooked fennel and spring onions. Scatter over any roughly chopped fennel fronds, if using. Serve mussels with warm hunks of toasted bread.

Tomato soup with rice

SERVES 4

70g short-grain white rice (see note)