INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped fennel, bulb only
1 onion, cut in half and sliced
2 teaspoons salt
10 turns freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup pernod
1/2 cup peeled and chopped Italian plum tomatoes
2 cups Shrimp Stock
40 Canadian Cove mussels
1/2 cup chopped green onions

DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a large non-reactive skillet over high heat. Add the fennel, onions, salt, and pepper and saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and Pernod and stand back in case it flames. Stir in the tomatoes and shrimp stock and bring to a simmer. Add the mussels and green onions, cover and steam over high heat until all of the mussel shells have opened, for about 4 minutes. Remove the mussels with tongs and let the broth cook for 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Makes 3 cups broth. To serve, arrange 10 mussels in each of 4 shallow bowls, and spoon 3/4 cup of the broth over them.