Saffron Seafood Soup

GARLIC SEAFOOD SOUP

Steps:

• Debeard the mussels if needed. Scrub the clams; if they feel too gritty, soak them in very salty ice water to expel the grit. Cut the snapper into 2-inch pieces. Set seafood aside.
• In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add ginger, half of the garlic, and the onion. When the mixture becomes fragrant, add the red and yellow bell pepper and the tomato and cook for 5 minutes. Turn heat to the lowest setting and cover.
• In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add remaining garlic, juice from 1 lime, clams, mussels and 1/2 cup clam broth. Cover pan and allow mixture to cook for 7 minutes. Uncover shellfish and discard any clams and mussels that have not opened. Add 1/2 of the cilantro, the saffron, snapper pieces, the jalapeno, banana, and the bell pepper mixture from the skillet. Stir to combine, making sure there is enough liquid, if not add more clam broth, then cover and cook for 6 to 8 minutes. (The banana will thicken the soup and will impart a sweet taste to counter the lime's sour taste. Banana should completely break down during the cooking). Add coconut milk and turn the heat off. Cover and reserve.
• Uncover the soup, sprinkle with remaining cilantro. Portion into bowls (be sure to remove the jalapeno pepper) and serve with lots of crusty bread and the lime wedges.

PROVENCAL FISH SOUP WITH SAFFRON ROUILLE

Steps:

• Wash leeks .
• Cook leeks, fennel bulb, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil with herbes de Provence, bay leaves, cayenne, saffron, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in an 8-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
• While vegetable mixture cooks, cut fish crosswise into 2- to 3-inch lengths.
• Add tomatoes, wine, and zest to vegetable mixture and bring to a boil, then boil 30 seconds. Add fish, water, and tomato paste and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until fish completely falls apart, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
• Arrange baguette slices in 1 layer on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown and thoroughly dried, about 20 minutes.
• Force soup through food mill into a large heavy pot, discarding solids. Reheat soup over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• Mound rouille on croutons and put 1 in bottom of each soup bowl. Pour soup around croutons.

SAFFRON SEAFOOD SOUP WITH AIOLI

Steps:

• Cut the fish fillets into inch-and-a-half pieces. Peel the shrimp; cut the scallops in half if they are large. Sprinkle the saffron threads into half a cup of water and set aside.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a heavy casserole or stock pot. Saute the onion, garlic, carrot and chopped celery stalk until soft and golden. Add the fish stock or clam juice to the vegetables with the saffron water and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
• Add fish, scallops and shrimp and cook four to five minutes. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with parsley. Serve the stew in heated bowls, passing the bread and aioli separately.

SAFFRON SEAFOOD SOUP

Steps:

• - Add the olive oil in a sauce pan and fry on low heat the onion, garlic and celery.
• - When the onion becomes golden, add the tomatoes and the glass of white wine, and cook for approximately 5 minutes.
• - Add the bay leaf, stock and saffron, bring to boil, reduce the heat, cover with the lid and simmer during 25 minutes.
• - Cut the pollock in pieces of approximately 2 cm, peel the scampi leaving the tail and making a shallow cut along the back. Add the pollock and the scampis to the soup and cook for 5 minutes.
• - Season with salt and pepper according to taste.
• - Serve with parsley on top.

THE ULTIMATE SEA FOOD SOUP

Steps:

• To make the fish stock, hack up the crabs with a large sharp knife and put them into a big stockpot. Peel and de-vein the shrimp and put the shells into the pot (reserve the shrimp for later). Add the fish bones on top. Add lemon and lemon juice, bay leaves, fennel, strip of orange zest, parsley, and thyme. Add the tomatoes, squeezing as you add them. Add garlic, leek, onion, water, and wine. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Place over a medium heat. Simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, but don't let it boil. Skim and discard the fish foam that rises to the surface. Remove from heat.
• Put the lobster claws into a large cast iron serving pot and strain the stock over them.
• Turn the temperature up and simmer for 5 minutes. Add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of saffron. Lastly add the reserved shrimp and lobster tails, and cook for 3 minutes. Add large bite sized pieces of sea bass and cook for 3 minutes.
• To serve: Place pieces of seafood in a big soup bowl. Put a spoonful of Rouille on Croutons and ladle soup on top.
• To make the rouille, put the red pepper, garlic, mayonnaise, saffron, cayenne, and lemon juice in a food processor. Pulse the mixture until combined and smooth. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• To make the croutons lightly brush the baguette slices with olive oil and bake until crisp, about 10 minutes.

SEAFOOD IN SAFFRON BROTH

Steps:

• Trim fennel stalks flush with bulb, discarding stalks. Finely chop fennel and onion. Seed tomato and finely chop. Mince garlic. Scrub mussels well and remove beards. Shell shrimp and devein. Cut scrod into 1-inch pieces. Stir saffron into wine.
• In a 4-quart kettle cook fennel and onion in oil over moderate heat, stirring, until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine mixture and simmer until reduced to about 1 tablespoon, about 3 minutes. Add mussels with 1/2 cup stock and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until most mussels are opened, about 2 minutes. Add shrimp, scrod, tomato, and remaining 2 1/2 cups stock and cook at a bare simmer until fish is just cooked through, about 2 minutes. (Discard any unopened mussels.) Season mixture with salt and pepper.
• Divide seafood between 2 bowls and ladle broth over it. Garnish seafood with lemon wedges and serve with bread.

SAFFRON SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter in a heavy-bottom soup kettle. Add onions, garlic and saffron and cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until onions are softened. Do not let onions brown.
• Bring chicken stock to a boil. Add bread crumbs to onions and stir to mix thoroughly. Add chicken stock and stir again. Bring soup to a boil and immediately lower heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
• Puree soup in a blender, food processor or fine-mesh food mill. Strain soup, discarding solids. Return to rinsed-out soup kettle. Add cream and lemon juice. Mix well and taste, adding salt and pepper if desired. May be served immediately, or chilled and served as a summer soup.