Mussel Pilaf with Tiny Pasta

Clean the mussels thoroughly by scrubbing the shells and removing the “beards”.

In a small saucepan, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion until softened. Add the mussels, deglaze with the white wine (allowing the alcohol to evaporate slightly), and simmer for 5 minutes.

Remove the mussels from the pan—discard any that have not opened—and strain the cooking liquid, keeping it warm.

Add the rice to the pan and pour in a few spoonfuls of the stock. Cook over a high heat, gradually adding more hot stock as the rice absorbs it.

Shortly before the rice is ready, add the mussels, saffron, dill and parsley.

Season with pepper and salt carefully (the mussel stock is already salty). Once the risotto is creamy and cooked, remove from the heat and allow it to rest for 5 minutes.

Serve immediately!