Recipes

Two Christmases ago, my Aunt made an incredible fish stew that honestly I have been thinking about since then.  I asked her for the recipe gobs of times and unfortunately she was never able to find it – however, what she could tell me was that is had tomato, fennel, onion, celeriac (celery root), carrots, and would work with whatever combination of spices you were in the mood for.  Definitely not a complete recipe, but at least a start and honestly pretty good considered she has cooked countless meals since then.  So here is my version of her simple fish stew.  I served mine over some couscous but it would be great on it’s own or over brown rice or pasta. Also, although this recipe has a lot of ingredients, it really is quote simple compared to a lot of fish stew recipes.

Simple Fish Stew
Servings: 8
Serving Size: about 1 1/2 cups
Nutritional Information: 187.2 calories,  3 g of fat, 12 g of carbohydrates, 3.5 of fiber,  25 g of protein * 4 P+

Ingredients
1.5 lbs firm white fish, I used red snapper
2 leeks, sliced
1 celeriac (celery root) diced
1 medium fennel bulb, diced
3 carrots, chopped
1 onion, sliced
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaves
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
6 minced garlic cloves
1 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
6-8 cups fish stock

Instructions
1. Warm the olive oil in a large soup pot or dutch oven. Add the onion, leeks, and fennel and cook for about 5 minutes until the onion begins to become translucent.

2. Stir in the garlic, carrots, and 1 tsp of salt and continue to cook for another 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Add in the celery root, can of diced tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, cumin, and bay leaves. Let simmer until very fragrant, about 8 minutes.

4. Add in the fish stock, tomato paste, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir together and let simmer for 35 minutes covered.

5. Sprinkle the fish with salt and pepper. Add the fish and the chopped parsley to the stew and cook 5-10 minutes until white and flaky.

6. Serve on it’s own with toasted crusty bread or over whole wheat couscous, brown rice, or even pasta.

Tip:  This stew freezes well and can be stored in individual containers for later use.