What's for Dinner?

Summer Bouillabaisse

-April Daniels Hussar

Lately, Real Simple has been a great source of recipes for me. Here is one that I tried and everyone loved (including my husband and my five-year-old daughter).

Ingredients 

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large bulb fennel, thinly sliced
4 stalks celery, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine
1 pound cod fillet, skin removed; cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 pounds tomatoes, chopped
1 pound mussels, scrubbed
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Kosher salt and pepper
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped

Directions

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the fennel, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly tender, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add the cod, shrimp, and tomatoes and cook, covered, for 3 minutes. Add the mussels and cook, covered, until the cod and shrimp are cooked through and the mussels have opened, 3 to 5 minutes.

Stir in the vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Sprinkle with the tarragon before serving.

Substitution: This light French seafood stew works well with a variety of fish. Sea bass, flounder, and halibut are tasty alternatives to cod, so buy what looks best at the market.

I served this with some fresh ciabatta bread. Sooo yummy! But it was a little garlicky - I'd cut down on the garlic next time - and also sauté it a bit first because it really doesn't have time to cook the way they tell you to do it in this recipe. Or - just make sure everyone in your house eats it!

I was scared of cooking shellfish - they forget to mention that you are supposed to "scrub" the mussels (actually, we used clams because the store was out of mussels). You can use a special wire brush but I was desperate so I just used a new, clean scrubby sponge. Worked fine! I felt like such a gourmet but actually it was so easy! This would be a good dish to make if you have fish-eating friends over and you want to impress with out working too hard.

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