//An old dish gets cozy with an original one

Tradditional Italian Cioppino

* 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil or almond oil
* 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
* 1/4 tsp saffron threads
* 2 cans of petite diced tomatoes
* 1 cup water
* 1 tbsp drained capers
* 1/2 tsp granted lemon zest
* 1/2 tsp granted orange zest (I used blood oranges)
* 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
* 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
* 1 tsp hot red pepper flakes
* 1 tsp kosher salt
* 1 lb jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
* 2 1/2 lbs of mussels, scrubbed well and beards removed if attached
* 1 loaf of artisanal bread (I chose to use a boule of rosemary olive oil bread from the La Brea bakery)

Heat oil in large deep skillet or Dutch over over medium-high heat until hot. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.

Add saffron, undrained tomatoes, water, capers, lemon zest, orange zest, lemon juice, orange juice, red pepper flakes, and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 10 to 15 minutes until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally.

Add shrimp and simmer until shrimp is just cooked through, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer shrimp with a slotted spoon to a bowl and set aside. Add mussels to skillet and return liquid to a simmer, cover and cook, just until mussels open wide. (Discard any mussels that remain unopened after 8 minutes.) Return shrimp to skillet.

Cut into the top of the boule (reserve top), scoop out most of the dough, and then spoon the cooked cioppino into it. Serve immediately.





Red Meets Green; Esctasy Ensues

* 1 head of broccocini, washed and patted dry
* 1 cameo apple, thinly sliced
* 2 stalks of celery, cut
* 2 blood oranges, 1 peeled and separated into segments, the other cut in half
* 1 round of linguica sausage, sliced width-wise
* 1/2 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Slice the stem off the broccocini and arrange it on plates. Artfully arrange the orange, apple, and celery slices. In a frying pan over medium-high heat, cook the smoked linguica sausage until it begins to "bulge." Remove from heat and in the same pan sautee the shrimp with a little salt and pepper; add the juice of one blood orange. Cook until the shellfish turns pink and the juice has reduced to a syrup. Place shrimp and sausage on top of the salad, and drizzle some of the blood orange sauce over the salad. Optional: Add fresh ground pepper.