Recipe: One-Pot Feast of The Seven+ Fishes by Barton Seaver Cooking Light (Edited) +++++

One-Pot Feast of The Seven+ Fishes (edited)

Festa dei sette pesci
AKA The Vigil, it is a Catholic Italian-American celebration of the Christmas Eve with several seafood-based dish.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound Medium Dry-Packed Scallops
1/2 pound Skinless Salmon fillet1/2 pound White-fleshed Fish1 can Small Oysters1 tablespoon EVOO1/2 cup White Wine1/2 cup Water12 Clams, scrubbed1 pound Mussels, cleaned1 ounce/can Canned Anchovy fillets, chopped, oil reserved1 medium Fennel Bulb, cored and sliced, fronds reserved4 Garlic cloves, chopped1 teaspoon Orange Zest1 (28-oz.) can Tomatoes
1 teaspoon Tomato Paste1 teaspoon crushed red pepper1/2 pound Medium Raw Shrimp peeled and deveined 1 loaf Toasted French Bread

Method:

1. Let scallops, salmon, and white fish come to room temperature.
2. Heat oil in a 26cm to 30cm LC over medium-high.
3. Seared scallops; cook until they develop a golden-brown crust on one side, about 2 minutes. Remove from pan, and set aside.
4. Optional - Add oil and seared the salmon; cook until they develop a golden-brown crust on both side, about 2 minutes each side.  Remove from pan, and set aside.
5. Remove excess oil if any but keep the brown bits.
6. In a saucepan, add 1/2 cup of white wine and 1/2 cup water to the pan.  Bring liquid to a boil.
7. Add clams to saucepan. Cover and cook until clams open, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer clams to a large bowl (discard any unopened clams).
8. In the same saucepan, add mussels to pan; cover and cook until they open, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn off heat. Remove mussels; set aside.
9. Pour the seafood liquid through a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl; set aside.
10. Return to the large LC, add oil from anchovies can to pan over medium heat.
11. Add anchovies; cook until dissolved, about 1 minute.
12. Increase heat to medium-high, add and stir fry fennel; cook until tender, 3 minutes. Add 4 gloves of chopped garlic and 1 teaspoon of orange zest; cook 1 minute.
13. Add 1 teaspoon Tomato Paste and the seafood liquid, 1 can of tomatoes, and 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper to pan.
14. Reduce heat to medium; simmer and uncovered, until sauce has thickened slightly, about 12 minutes.
15. Gather a pile in the center of the LC to create high (for better presentation.)  Add oysters into the center of the LC.
16. Nestle and arrange the white fish, salmon, and shrimps into the sauce. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until seafood is opaque, 5 minutes.
17. Lastly, add and arrange mussels, clams, and scallops (cooked sides up.)
18. Do not cover with lid and heat until warmed through for about 2 minutes.
19. Top with reserved fennel fronds and serve with toasted French bread.

Presenttion Lesson learned:  The oysters sunk in the middle.  The jumbo shrimps were not well display here.  So,  step 15 Gather a pile in the center to create high.  And, I forgot step 19 to add the fennel fronds.