2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup diced tomato
1 cup dry vermouth
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
24 fresh mussels, scrubbed and debearded (or cleaned and frozen mussels)
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons cornstarch
4 cups hot cooked linguine

Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 5 minutes. Add tomato and next 6 ingredients; bring to a boil. Add mussels; cover and cook 3 minutes or until shells open. Remove the skillet from heat, and discard any unopened shells. Let mussels cool. Reserve a few shells with meat intact. Remove the meat from remaining shells, and add meat to tomato mixture; discard shells. Combine water and cornstarch; add to tomato mixture. Bring to a boil over medium heat, and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Spoon 1-cup pasta onto individual serving plates; top each with 1-cup sauce and a few mussels in shells.

Makes 4 Servings
Serving Size: 8 ounces linguine and 6 mussels