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Featured
Recipe: Service for 8
Ingredients
(any 4 or more types of fish)
1 pound Mussels
4 lobster carcasses (cleaned) coarsely chopped
4 servings striped bass
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2 Medium New Potatoes
5 roasted tomatoes
1 small head of coarsely chopped Fennel with
stems reserved
1 Medium White Onions coarsely chopped
1 small leek coarsely chopped (white part)
1 small head of garlic cut in half crosswise
1 tsps. Saffron threads
1/8 cup Pernod or Pastis
2 large sprigs of thyme
bunch of flat parsley
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1 Chili pepper
2 fish stock or water
Salt and Cayenne Pepper
FOR THE SOUP BASE:
Crush the cleaned lobster carcasses
in a bag using a mallet.
In a stainless steel stockpot
heat a tablespoon of olive oil and sauté
the shells till bright red. In a large stock
pot add the onions, garlic and fennel stems
and cook till translucent. Add the tomatoes,
fennel, onion, leek, thyme, bay leaf, fennel
and coriander seeds, pernod, and saffron (crumble
the saffron as you add it) then add the water
(for a more concentrated broth use fish stock
if available) and bring to a boil. Add the lobster
shells and let the soup simmer for 1 hour.
Let the soup cool then remove
the thyme and bay leaf. Pass the mixture in
small batches through very coarse colander.
Discard each time any fish scraps which do not
pass. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
You now have your soup base. You
can make this soup base in the morning and store
it in the refrigerator till ready to use.It
can also be prepared a day or two ahead of time.
FOR THE FINAL BOUILLABAISSE
Use the ends of the striped bass
to add thickness to the soup. Add the bones
from the fish if available and fish tail to
the broth. Cook till fish falls apart and begins
to add some thickness to the soup.
Cook the mussels separately in
an 1/8 cup of white wine for 5 minutes. Reduce
the remain broth, then add the juices to the
base stock.
Dice up the potatoes and fennel
head (bulb) into small 1/2 inch dice. Bring
the soup back to a boil and add the potatoes
and fennel cook for 5 minutes till vegetables
are done.
SEARED WILD STRIPED BASS
For this recipe we sautéed
the striped bass to produce a crispy skin. Sauté
the fillets skin side down holding the fillets
down at the beginning of cooking to allow an
even sear.
Assembly:
Put some diced fennel and new
potatoes in the center of a plate. Place a piece
of striped bass on top. Add around the fish
a few mussels. Then ladle the soup around the
fish. Garnish with diced parsley.
Wine Pairing -- Sauvignon Blanc
or Pinot Grigio
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