Last summer's tomatoes star in tonight's dinner. As this year's garden begins to come alive I become more aware of what is left in the freezer from last summer.  The goal is always to put away just enough to get us through to the next garden. The trick is to know what quantity to save and to determine what types of produce we will actually use over the winter.  I always freeze as many green beans as we have available, as well as tomatoes.  The tomatoes I freeze simply peeled and quartered, made into sauce, or oven roasted. We always use almost every container before the next crop ripens. Our freezer is now beginning to look a little bare - at this point, that's a good thing.

For tonight's dinner I made a traditional fish stew or bouillabaisse using one container of oven roasted tomatoes with basil and garlic, as well as a container (16oz) of quartered tomatoes, dated 9/08 - (they were fine). You can always use chopped fresh or canned tomatoes, but I think that the concentrated flavor of the oven roasted tomatoes added a deep richness to the broth that would not be obtained with fresh or canned tomatoes. I didn't have fish stock available, so substituted chicken stock.  The bouillabaisse was quick and easy to prepare and was delicious!

Bouillabaisse
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, slivered
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp fennel seeds
10 - 12 saffron threads
2 Tbsp boiling water
16 oz , or more chopped tomatoes, canned, frozen, or fresh
4 cups fish or chicken stock
3/4 lb. of white fish, cubed (I used halibut)
3/4 lb. shrimp
1/2 lb of butter clams
2 Tbsp italian parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, garlic, red pepper, and fennel seeds.  Saute until onion is soft and golden - about 6 - 8 minutes.  Meanwhile, place the saffron threads in a small bowl, pour boiling water over and let steep.

When onion is cooked, add the tomatoes, saffron/water, and stock to the pan.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the clams and cook for about 2 minutes, then add the fish and shrimp. Simmer for about 2 - 4 minutes more.  I found that the clams took longer to cook than the fish.  Clams are done when their shells open, the shrimp should be an opaque pink color and the fish flakey.

Adjust seasonings, stir in the chopped parsley and serve.

Add a fresh green salad and crusty bread for a lovely spring dinner.