Italian Seafood Stew

• 1 lb. ripe roma tomatoes
• 1-1/2 fennel bulbs
• 3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for your bread.
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups bottled clam juice
• 4 cups water
• 2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 dash red pepper flakes
• 14 mussels, in the shell well scrubbed
• 2 lb. fresh assorted white fish fillets, such as sea bass,hilibut,red snapper and sole,cut into 2 inch pieces.
• 1/2 lb. sm. shrimp, peeled and deveined (leave tail fin on)
• 4 slices crusty Italian bread
• coarsely chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley (to garnish)

1. Cut tomatoes in half, squeeze out the seeds and chop coarsely.
2. If you can stand it, remove skin too, but I have no patience for that.
3. Trim the root end of each fennel bulb and remove stalks.
4. Cut the bulbs in half lengthwise and then cut each half lengthwise into 4 wedges; set aside.
5. In large saucepan/pot over medium-low heat warm the olive oil.
6. Add garlic and saute until it just begins to change color, 1-2 minutes.
7. Add tomatoes, fennel and bay leaves and cook uncovered for 10 minutes.
8. Stir in lemon juice, wine, water, salt and red pepper.
9. Cover partially and cook till fennel is almost tender, about 20 minutes.
10. Discard any mussels that do not close to the touch.
11. Add fish cover, and barely simmer on low for 10 minutes.
12. Add mussels and shrimp and continue to barely simmer for 45 minutes or until all mussels are open and shrimp is pink.
13. Discard and mussles that did not open.
14. Taste, adjust seasoning.
15. Preheat oven to 350F.
16. Brush each bread slice with olive oil, arrange on baking sheet oiled side up, warm in oven a few minutes.
17. To serve, place 1 bread slice in a soup bowl (4 inch) and ladle the stew over the bread.
18. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

ripe roma tomatoes, fennel, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, bay leaves, lemon juice, white wine, clam juice, water, salt, red pepper, mussels, assorted white fish, shrimp, crusty italian bread, flatleaf italian parsley

Taken from www.foodgeeks.com/recipes/19109 (may not work)