Hiking (snowshoeing) into the backcountry of Jasper National Park with Marty Up North, we choose to venture into the Fortress Lake area by way of the Sunwapta Falls Trail Head. We camped on the bank of the Athabasca River which is the longest river in Alberta (1,538 km). The first 168 km (located in Jasper National Park) are designated as a Canadian Heritage River. As a tributary to the Mackenzie River, water flowing on the Athabasca River eventually drains into the Arctic Ocean.
For lunch I decided to make prawns and mussels in a spicy citrus white wine sauce. Marty has mentioned his love of mussels many times and I figured what better time than now to make this for us. Getting a fresh baguette in town before the drive that morning put this meal over the top for me.
EQUIPMENT NEEDED:
– Fuel Canister
– Burner
– Long handled spork
– Pot w/ lid
INGREDIENTS:
– Butter, 3 oz.
– Prawns 3-4 per person
– Mussels, 1 pound
– Lemon, 2 zested
– Italian Parsley, 2 fluid ounces chopped
– Red Onion, 3 ounces julienned
– White Wine, 4 fluid ounces
– Sriracha Sauce, 1 fluid ounce (or more if you want it spicier)
MISE EN PLACE INSTRUCTIONS:
*ZESTING… a zester, grater, vegetable peeler, paring knife is used to scrape or cut zest from the fruit. Alternatively, the peel is sliced, then excess pith (if any) cut away. The white portion of the peel under the zest (pith, albedo or mesocarp) may be unpleasantly bitter and is generally avoided by limiting the peeling depth.
*Julienne, allumette, or french cut, is a culinary knife cut in which the food item is cut into long thin strips, similar to matchsticks.
– Julienne cut red onions
– Chop Italian parsley
– Zest lemons
Mix above ingredients together and store in a ziplock bag.
– De-vein prawns
– Marinate prawns in oil, lemon juice, red pepper flakes
Store in a ziplock bag.
ON TRAIL INSTRUCTIONS:
– Melt 2 fluid ounces of butter in your pot
– Add ziplock bag of onions, parsley and lemon zest
– Season as you sweat the onions until they’re translucent
– Add your prawns and stir ingredients, allow to cook for 1-2 minutes
– Drain any liquid from your mussels and add to your pot
– Toss in remaining butter and sriracha, mix all ingredients well
– Pour in white wine and bring to a quick boil
– Lid pot and cook mussels until they have opened
** IF ANY MUSSELS HAVE NOT OPENED THEY ARE BAD, THROW THEM OUT!!!
Open lid and eat, mop up the “soup” with a fresh baguette
GET OUTSIDE AND FEED YOUR ADVENTURE