Venetian Fish Soup Or Stew

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This is probably one of the best fish soups or stews you will ever eat.  It is a classic at Harry's Bar in Venice.

 Having lucked out on some fish this week, I decided to serve it as a stew by adding more fish and shrimp and serving it with white rice on the side. I also cut the pieces slightly larger than I would for a soup.  Either way, it is fish soup (or stew) at its best, but only if you follow it to a t and use good fresh fish.

I know I have just published a recipe from Harry's (the cannelloni) and you may be wondering what's up with me.  While looking for the pasta recipe I came across this and decided I must try it.  Heaven knows I have heard raves about it but never had enough room in me to have both this and a pasta when I visited the restaurant.    So I had to give it a go before this winter was over and here we are, March 1st.  The daffodils are about to pop.

Although I served it for dinner tonight, it would also make a fine main course for Sunday lunch with friends or family.

Make sure you make the fish broth from scratch.  A good stock can make or break a soup or stew like this and fish cubes don't cut the mustard here.  Trust me, the end result will more than reward you.

I used fresh mahi mahi and flash frozen cod.  Fresh shrimp would be great.

Don't skip anything, and that includes the anchovies and the parsley.  I know you are frowning at the former and consider the latter a waste of time.  They are not.
 

Make sure you accompany with a fresh baguette even if you serve with rice on the side.

The real color of the soup is a beautiful saffron or that of butternut squash.  Not being a great photographer, I had to touch up and it came out like this. 

  

 Venetian Fish Soup

Serves 6 to 8 as a first course or 6 if doubling the fish and shrimp and serving with rice as a stew.

Ingredients

• 2 stalks celery, cut into julienne strips
• 2 medium onions, julienned
• 1 carrot, julienned
• 1/3 c. olive oil
• 1 medium tomato, peeled, seeded, julienned
• 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 8 cups stock (brodo) -- fish or half fish and half vegetable
• 1/4 (or more) t. saffron threads (steep in tablespoon of hot stock for20 minutes)
• 1 bay leaf
• pinch cayenne
• salt and black pepper
• 1/2 lb. EACH of two kinds of boneless, skinless white fish (such as halibut, sea bass, monkfish) cut into 1/2 inch. pieces
• 1/2 lb. medium shrimp (shelled, deveined), cut into thirds
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 1 clove garlic, minced                                                 
• 2 canned anchovy fillets, drained and chopped (or use anchovy paste)
• 3 flat leaf parsley sprigs, chopped
• fresh rosemary, leaves from 1 sprig chopped (or pinch dried)
• fresh thyme, leaves from 1 sprig chopped (or pinch dried)

Directions:                                                 

• First make the brodo or stock (See below). Set aside. 

• Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in large saucepan over medium heat.
• Add celery, onions and carrot and cook, stirring often for 5 minutes or until soft but not brown.
• Add tomato and cook for 1 minute
• Stir in 1/4 c. flour and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Stir in wine and bring to a boil, then simmer, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes, until mixture has thickened.
• Stir in stock, saffron, bay leaf, cayenne, salt and pepper to taste, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine remaining flour with 1/4 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper in plastic bag, and toss fish and shrimp until well coated.
• Heat 2 Tbsp. of the oil in large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook fish and shrimp, stirring, for 2-3 minutes until browned and just cooked. Don't overcook.
• Add brandy to skillet to warm it, then (standing back) ignite brandy. Swirl the skillet until flames die down, then add contents of skillet to soup.
• Wipe out skillet and heat remaining oil over medium heat. Add remaining ingredients, anchovies, rosemary, thyme, parsley and garlic and cook for a minute or two.  Pour the flavored oil through a strainer into the soup.   Let flavors blend a few minutes before serving.

Brodo (fish stock):

2 to 3 lbs bones of any white fish
1 medium onion cut in chunks
2 leeks, white part only, washed and sliced
1 celery rib cut in chunks
2 quarts cold water
1 cup dry white wine
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp salt
bouquet garni of
3 flat leaf parsley sprigs
1 thyme sprig
1 bay leaf
10 peppercorns all tied in cheesecloth

Throw everything in a stock pot, bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes on medium partially covered.  Let cool.  Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl


Recipe adapted from Harry's Bar Cookbook
All photos Lindaraxa

Creamed Oysters On Toasted Cornbread

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If you are of a certain age, you will remember these fondly, especially at this time of the year.  

Oysters have been an important part of a Thanksgiving menu since the Indians brought them to that first three day celebration with the Pilgrims in 1620.  They were particularly popular in New York and New England.  During the heyday of New York’s oyster production (In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the city’s waters produced around 700 million oysters a year) East Coast cookbooks unanimously and prominently featured oysters on the Thanksgiving Day. menu.

Fanny Farmer"s

The Plaza Hotel 1899

 


The trend seems to have taken a real upswing in the Gilded Age and endured — at least in the cookbooks sampled — until around WWII. What happened then? They probably became too much of a luxury, I suppose, and in the city, the local beds were long since polluted and harvested into depletion.

This particular recipe used to be a classic in the mid 1900,s but it too disappeared from everyone's radar.  Perhaps people got tired of it or oysters became prohibitively expensive to serve for a group.  Those who know about the good things in life have not forgotten them.  You can buy them shucked, in their liquid, in the Fish section of most grocery stores.  They are not that expensive and taste very fresh.  If you want to impress a group of gourmets sometime, I suggest you serve them.  I, on the other hand, am trying to singlehandedly revive them.  It's simply too good a recipe to shelve.  Aside from Thanksgiving, Creamed Oysters make for a wonderful lunch, served with a salad.  The cornbread is a new twist on the usual thin toast over which they are serve.  It is not my idea.  It is Gourmet's.

Readers know that this time next week I will be entertaining my grandchildren for Thanksgiving for the first time ever.  For this occasion, they will be the guests of honors and will be catered to in every which way a grandmother knows how to do, but to a certain extent.   Yes they will be privy to all the things Lindaraxa enjoyed as a child but they will also sit at the table and hopefully behave like their parents have trained them to.  I did not get to sit with the grown ups until after I was eight but parents these days are different so we must adapt.  Compromise, my favorite new word.

I enjoyed a small sample for lunch today after  I shot these photos.  Yep. that's my plate. I had every intention of bringing out the silver and staging a more professional shoot, but promptly gave up.  They looked too good to pass up. 

 

 

Creamed Oysters on Toasted Corn Bread

Serves 8 as a first course

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup minced shallot
• 1/2 cup minced celery plus 3 tablespoons finely chopped celery leaves
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 32 shucked oysters, reserving 1 1/4 cups of the liquor, strained
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground celery seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
• 8 squares of corn bread, split, toasted, and buttered

• In a large heavy saucepan cook the shallot and the minced celery in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until the vegetables are softened, add the flour, and cook the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in the reserved oyster liquor, the milk, and the cream, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring, and simmer it, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, the celery seeds, the cayenne, the oysters, and salt to taste, simmer the mixture for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the edges of the oysters curl, and stir in the celery leaves.
• Arrange a bottom half of a corn bread square on each of 8 heated plates, spoon the creamed oysters over the bottom halves, and top them with the remaining halves.

 
Recipe by Kemp M. Minifie
Gourmet Magazine November 1993  

Stuffed Crabs...A Delightful Summer Lunch

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 Don't confuse this recipe with crabmeat au gratin which has a white sauce and is slightly richer. This is the Southern version and one of my favorite ways to cook crab when you have the freshest or the very best.  If you don't want to fiddle around with cooking and cleaning crabs, purchase the meat from the fishmonger, but only if it is very fresh.  Costco also sells a tin of lump crabmeat that is outstanding.  I think the name is Red Star and comes in a large blue and white tin box. Be careful, they have two tins, one more expensive than the other.  For this recipe, definitely buy the former.  There is nothing, however, like fresh crabmeat so caveat emptor!

 To replace the crab shells that are traditionally used as cooking and serving vessels, use scallop shells, which can also be used for Coquilles St. Jacques, another favorite.

This makes for a delicious summer lunch, accompanied with a simple green salad and cantaloupe gelato for dessert!


Printable Recipe

Ingredients

For 4 servings

- 12 small crabs

- 1 clove of garlic, minced

- 1 onion, finely chopped

- 1 shallot, finely chopped

- 2 tbsp. oil

- 2 tbsp. lemon juice

- 1 tsp. hot pepper sauce

- 4 tbsp. bread crumbs

- 2 tbsp. butter


Method

1.Clean the crabs; place them into a large pot and cover with cold water; boil for 30 minutes;

2.Cool the crabs in cold water; shell them and remove the meat; clean the shells to use for serving;

3.Sauté the onion and garlic in the oil; add the flaked crab; season with salt and pepper; cook for about 5 minutes;

4.Add the shallot, lemon juice, hot sauce, half the bread crumbs and 1 tbsp. butter;

5.Combine well; let cool for 10 minutes;

6.Fill the shells with this mixture; combine the remaining bread crumbs and butter and place on top of the crab mixture;

7.Place into a 350 °F  oven for 15-20 minutes;

8.Garnish the plate with strips of hot pepper and bunches of parsley.

A Very Simple Paella for Sunday Lunch

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Paella is one of those dishes that look and sound complicated when they really are not.  I have to admit that even I am intimidated by the damn dish particularly since everyone in my family claims to have the real recipe for Spanish paella.  Their paella is the best paella ever cooked, so when I make mine, I make sure not to invite them, so I won't have to hear how theirs is different and much much better.

Paella is really a rice dish, very similar to risotto, except you throw in everything but the kitchen sink.  Long considered the national dish of Spain, a good paella will have chicken, pork, chorizo, a combination of shellfish such as shrimp, mussels and clams, zaffron, tomato paste, peas, pimiento slices and sometimes, white asparagus spears. These are the basics but not necessarily all of the ingredients you can add to a mixed paella. Now comes the arguments, some will add cider, others beer, and still others white wine.  There is always the jerk who claims it can only be made with champagne!

I am giving you a recipe for a "starter" paella,  very simple, economical and not complicated to make. I just want you to get your feet wet.  Later on we'll talk about making it fancier.

For spring and summer, I prefer to serve a late Sunday lunch instead of an early dinner, or supper as they call it down here.   This is the time of the year when I like to cook hearty rice dishes such as paellas and risottos.  To me, rice dishes are really for lunch, they are too heavy to be enjoyed and properly digested late at night.

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups chicken or fish stock  or combo of both

Pinch saffron threads

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

1 medium onion, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 ounces Spanish chorizo or other cooked or smoked sausage

2 teaspoons smoked paprika (pimenton)

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup tomato puree

2 cups short- or medium-grain rice, preferably paella rice (valencia) or Arborio

1 cup peas (frozen are fine)

1 jar pimento slices

1/2 lbs peeled shrimp

Cuttlefish or monkfish (optional)

Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Warm the stock with the saffron in a small saucepan. Put the oil in a 10- or 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, cook the chicken until deeply browned on both sides, then add the onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it softens, 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Add the chorizo, paprika, wine, and tomato purée; bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the rice, scattering it in the pan as evenly as possible, cook, stirring occasionally, until it’s shiny, another minute or two. Carefully add the warm stock and peas and stir until just combined, then tuck the shrimp into the top before putting in the oven.

3. Put the pan in the oven and bake, undisturbed, for 15 or 20 minutes. Check to see if the rice is dry and just tender. If not, return the pan to the oven for 5 minutes. If the rice looks too dry at this point, but still isn’t quite done, add a small amount of stock or water. When the rice is ready, add the pimientoes, turn off the oven and let it sit for at least 5 and up to 15 minutes.

Paella usually has a layer of toasted rice at the bottom of the pan. This is considered a delicacy in Spain and is essential to a good paella. The toasted rice develops on its own if the paella is cooked over a burner or open fire. If cooked in an oven, however, it will not. To correct this, place the paellera over a high flame while listening to the rice toast at the bottom of the pan. Once the aroma of toasted rice wafts upwards, remove it from the heat. The paella must then sit (most recipes recommend the paella be covered with a towel at this point) for about five minutes to absorb the remaining broth.

4. Before serving, sprinkle with parsley.

Adapted from The Way to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman

Baked Shrimp Scampi With Basil Lemon Butter

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If I told you what I had for dinner tonight you wouldn't believe me. Now, you know I pride myself in the balance of my menus, but tonight, I threw all that out the window.  I had a Chinese appetizer, an Italian main dish and a Spanish, no, let me rephrase,  Catalan dessert... and it worked!

Like a good time, it wasn't planned, it just happened.  I had made the Minced Chicken in Lettuce Wraps the night before and I had doubled the recipe, so there was plenty for an appetizer tonight.  I wanted to have shrimp, but I didn't want to complicate my life, so I decided to improvise with whatever was handy in the refrigerator and the pantry.  This afternoon, I was wrapping up a new post for Crema Catalana and I could barely finish before I was down in the kitchen pulling out pots and pans to make some for dinner.  And...that's how the meal developed.

Oh yes, as to the shrimp, it is a variation of the one I make when I have dinner parties.  It is so simple you can add it to your list of main dishes for a midweek dinner party. The basil paste is found in the produce section of most supermarkets.  It's very handy to have on hand, particularly in the winter.  You can always just crush a few basil leaves as a substitute. 

Make sure you serve it with yellow rice, as in saffron yellow rice.  In a pinch, the menu I just described, though odd, works, although you will have a lot of explaining to do to your guests!

Ingredients

2 pounds (12 to 15 per pound) shrimp in the shell

3 tablespoons good olive oil

2 tablespoons dry white wine

basil paste

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 teaspoons minced garlic (4 cloves)

1/4 cup minced shallots

3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 extra-large egg yolk

2/3 cup panko (Japanese dried bread flakes)

Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Peel, devein, and butterfly the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, garlic, basil paste, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Allow to sit at room temperature while you make the butter, parsley, crumb and garlic mixture.

In the microwave, use a small bowl to melt the butter with 2 garlic cloves minced,  parsley, basil,  lemon zest, lemon juice,  panko, salt, and pepper until combined.

In a  14-inch oval or rectangular gratin dish, arrange the shrimp in a single layer cut side down with the tails curling up and towards the center of the dish. Pour the lemon basil butter mix over the shrimp making sure you spread the butter mixture evenly . Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until hot and bubbly.  Place under a broiler for 1 minute (watch!). Serve with lemon wedges.

This post was originally written in March 2010

Camargue Style Mussels...Remembering Provence

Pin It A few days after I posted the Moules Mariniere, I thought about another of my favorite ways to cook them and just had to sneak this in.

There is nothing in the world like mussels with fennel and Pernod and in Provence they have a wonderful recipe that also includes tomatoes and leeks. I thought I would share it with you since mussels are such an inexpensive summer and winter lunch. Don't forget a nice crusty bread and a chilled white wine. Try a Sancerre this time... a Riesling would be nice too!

If you want the complete Provencal experience, finish with the Figs in Rosemary Honey for dessert!


Ingredients


4 1/2 pounds [2 kg] fresh mussels, in shells
1 onion
2 leeks [white only]
2 fennel
3 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon [15 mL] fennel seeds
2 tablespoons [30 mL] olive oil
1/2 cup [125 mL] dry white wine
2 tablespoons [30 mL] Pastis or Pernod
28 ounces [796 mL] diced tomatoes
2 fresh parsley sprigs or 1 pinch dried parsley
2 fresh thyme sprigs or 1 pinch dried thyme
Salt and pepper





Preparation


Well scrub mussel shells under cold, running water; reserve [do not soak shells in water].

Chop onion, leeks, fennel or celery stalks, garlic and fennel seeds.

Into a large casserole, heat olive oil over medium heat; add onion mixture for approximately 5 minutes, until leeks are soft.

Do not brown vegetables.

Mix in dry white wine, Pastis and tomatoes.

Salt and pepper, to taste.

Bring to a boil; simmer for 5 minutes.

Mix in mussels, parsley and thyme.

Cover; cook over high heat, until shells open-up, approximately 5 minutes.

Throw away unopened shells.

Using a slotted spoon, remove mussel shells from casserole.

Remove mussels from shells; arrange mussels onto individual plates, or into shell halves, as you would oysters.

If using fresh parsley and thyme, remove sprigs from sauce.

Cook sauce, over high heat, for 5 minutes.

Pour sauce over mussels and serve immediately.

Shrimp Creole...Remembering Craig Claiborne

Pin It We go around trying to invent new recipes when there are so many old ones, like Shrimp Creole, that are just great.

To those of you too young to remember, Craig Claiborne (September 4, 1920 – January 22, 2000) was an American restaurant critic, food writer and former food editor of the New York Times from 1957 to 1988. He was the author of numerous cookbooks and an autobiography. Over the course of his career, he made many contributions to gastronomy and food writing in the United States including the now-universal reviewing system of awarding stars to reflect quality. His most famous, and best-selling cookbook is the 1961 NEW YORK TIMES COOKBOOK. Craig Claiborne died at 79 and left his considerable estate to the Culinary Institute of America.

Two cookbooks were given to me for my wedding in 1969...one of them was the Joy of Cooking and the other was The New York Times Cookbook by Craig Claiborne. Together with my grandmother, my mother and Julia Child, he was one of the most influential people in my kitchen.

This is an adaptation of Craig Claiborne's Shrimp Creole recipe. I made it over the weekend with some tweeking here and there and it was one of the best shrimp dishes I have cooked in a long, long time. It's a great dish to prepare for a dinner party as it can easily be prepared a day or two ahead. It freezes very nicely too. Why don't you serve it with the Cold Cucumber & Spinach Soup to start!

I had it with a chilled and inexpensive Pinot Grigio which was already chilling in the refrigerator and it was great!

Yield 2 -4 Servings

Ingredients

1 pound raw shrimp

2 tablespoons butter*

2 tablespoons olive oil *

3/4 cup coarsely chopped onion

3 small ribs celery, coarsely chopped

1 green pepper, cored, seeded and coarsely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely minced

2 cups canned tomatoes, preferably Italian peeled tomatoes

(I used Pomi Crushed Tomatoes)

2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried

1 bay leaf

Tabasco sauce

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

Worcestershire sauce (optional)*

Juice of half a lemon.

Directions

1. Shell and devein the shrimp. Rinse and pat dry. Set aside.

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until onion is wilted. Add the celery, green pepper and garlic. Cook briefly, stirring. The vegetables must remain crisp.

3. Add the tomatoes, thyme, bay leaf, Tabasco and Worcesterhire sauce to taste, lemon rind, salt and pepper to taste. I added the basil and lemon basil, but its optional. Simmer 10 minutes uncovered. 4. Add the shrimp and cover. Cook three to five minutes, no longer. Add the chopped parsley, lemon juice and, if desired, more Tabasco sauce to taste.

Moules Mariniere...Remembering Barfleur!

Pin It Sometimes a place reminds you of something special, a kiss, a meal or just a delightful experience Other times, it is a recipe that brings forth the wonderful memories.

To me, Moules Mariniere will always remind me of a week I spent in Normandy, in a small town named Barfleur, with my close friends Yiyina and Ricardo. Now, these two are not just close friends, they are very special friends. They've taken care of me when I was ill and they have shared with me some of the most fantastic gastronomic experiences anyone can have. The three of us have travelled together many times for long periods of time, renting houses all over France, our favorite spot. That's not easy, not with two women who are great friends and one husband to share! Goes to show you how special they are.

Several years ago, we rented a Captains House in the harbour on Barfleur. I imagine it was similar to the ones in Nantucket. It was a charming house, but very, very uncomfortable. The wonderful thing was it's location, right smack in front of the harbour, where we could see the fishing boats come in and out, day in day out. That's all we did the first two days of our stay... sit by the window and watch the boats unload their catch.




It was fascinating to watch the tides. In low tide it was as if the water had been completely drained out of the harbour, just like Mont Saint Michel, but more dramatic. When the tide came back in, in came the fishing fleet and all the boats in the harbour straightened out again!

The main street surrounding the harbour was full of small family owned restaurants with signs advertising Moules Frites. That's not fried mussels like I thought at first, rather Moules Mariniere, with french fries on the side. Works for me...

As long as I live, every time I see moules on a recipe or in a menu, I will think of Barfleur and my friends the Bosques. Tonight, I was checking my blog when I saw this recipe from the James Beard Foundation. I have taken out the salt, as mussels are pretty salty on their own, as well as the tabasco sauce. No hot moules for me. The rest are pretty standard ingredients for Moules Mariniere. Make sure you have plenty of fresh, crusty baguettes on hand to soak up the buttery, aromatic broth. A nice, well chilled Muscadet is wonderful with shellfish and perfect for another great summer lunch, particularly if you have weekend guests at the beach! It is also inexpensive.

Ingredients

2 to 3 quarts mussels, scrubbed and bearded
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 to 3 sprigs parsley
1 stick unsalted butter
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
½ cup white wine
½ cup chopped parsley


Place the garlic, onion, parsley sprigs, 4 tablespoons of the butter, salt, and pepper in a large pot. Add the mussels and pour the wine over them. Cover tightly and cook over low heat until the shells open.

Transfer the mussels to a soup tureen or serving dish. Add the remaining butter and chopped parsley to the pot. Adjust the seasoning and serve the mussels in soup plates along with some of the broth and plenty of crusty bread.

Historic Significance of Barfleur




In the Middle Ages Barfleur was one of the chief ports of embarkation for England

1066 - A large medallion fixed to a rock in the harbour marks the Norman departure from Barfleur before the Battle of Hastings.

1120 - The White Ship, carrying Prince William, only legitimate son of Henry I of England, went down outside the harbour.

1154 - Henry II and his consort, Eleanor of Aquitaine, took ship from Barfleur despite the weather and survived the crossing.

1194 - Richard I of England departed from Barfleur on return to England following his captivity by Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor.

Later
1692 - Battles of Barfleur and La Hougue

Our house was the third house from the left, next to the white house. The photos of Barfleur are from Flickr. The photo of the mussels from the James Beard Foundation.

7/26: For a wonderful recipe for Moules Provencal with Fennel try this one from Marc Bittman!

A Quick Light Lunch...Steamed Clams & Clam Chowder Tomorrow!

Pin It Some of my best recipes come when I have to improvise. Last weekend, while visiting my son and family in Atlanta, we took a fast run to Costco and as luck would have it, my daughter in law also loves clams. On the way out we picked up a bag of fresh clams and a baguette for a quick lunch and salivated all the way home without remembering we were out of onions! but the night before I had seen some leeks that needed to be used fast and had mulled the idea of leek and potato soup. Ta ta! I substituted them instead of the onions and added some heavy cream that I found fresh in the refrigerator. The result was a softer version of my recipe for Clams Provencal and a keeper. Use the leftover broth and clams for New England Clam Chowder tomorrow!

Ingredients

3 leeks, chopped
4 TB.butter
1/2 bottle of dry white wine
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1 large bag of clams
8 sprigs of dill
parsley
Pepper

Directions

In a tall pot, sautee the leeks in the butter until soft and translucent. Add the clams and the wine to cover them by about 3/4 full. Add dill, parsley and fresh pepper. Cover and steam until all the clams are open. About 15-20 mins. Discard those that don't open. Add the cream and steam for another minute. Serve with a nice crusty bread, a salad and a nice dry white wine or rose.

Sauteed Scallops in Mustard Sauce

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 I have made this recipe many, many times. It is always a success. You can make it with bay or sea scallops. A nice and inexpensive Muscadet goes well with it as well as with other shellfish.

yield: Serves 2

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Ingredients

3/4 pound sea or bay scallops
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large shallot, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
2 scallion greens, cut diagonally into 1/4-inch slices (about 2 tablespoons)

White Rice

Preparation

Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. In a 10-to 12-inch non-stick skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté scallops 1 to 2 minutes on each side (depending on size), or until golden and just cooked through. Transfer scallops with tongs to a plate and keep warm, covered loosely.

In oil remaining in skillet cook shallot over moderate heat, stirring, until softened. Add wine and boil, scraping up brown bits, 1 minute. Stir in water and mustard and simmer until reduced to about 1/4 cup. Add butter and swirl skillet, returning skillet to heat as necessary, until butter is just incorporated into sauce. Season sauce with salt and pepper.

Spoon sauce onto a small platter or 2 plates. Top sauce with scallops and sprinkle with scallion. Serve scallops with white rice.