Begin by washing the mussels three to four times to remove all of the sand. To clean the mussels, place in a bowl and fill with water. Mix around and drain. Repeat three to four more times. Remove the beards and discard any mussels that are already open. If they are open, that means they are dead and you don't want to eat those. Fill the bowl with water again and add salt to remove any sand left. Mix and let sit for at least ten to fifteen minutes. Drain and they are ready to start cooking.
In a deep, wide saute pan, pour in the olive oil and heat over a medium/high flame. Add in the butter and mix around until completely melted.
Once melted, add in the shallots and garlic. The garlic is from my garden, so that is why they are so tiny. After about a minute of stirring the shallots and garlic, add in the hot pepper, thyme, parsley, and celery. Continuously mix for about two minutes.
Next, pour in the wine and continue to cook for about two minutes, making sure to mix occasionally. Once the broth starts to simmer, lower the flame to medium/low.
Add in the mussels and season with sea salt and black pepper. Mix the mussels around so that they are coated with the broth. Cover with a lid and let steam for about 5 minutes or until you notice most of the mussels have opened up a bit.
Remove from the stove top and serve with a side of crispy bread to dip into the broth. Enjoy! Salute and cin cin!