by Peggy Knickerbocker  Special To The Chronicle

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Soupe de Poisson
Jean-Pierre Moullé makes a traditional fish soup with the monkeyface pricklebacks,
 but you can use rockfish or any substantial white fish instead.
The following recipe, for simplicity's sake, is a flavorful basic soup stock;
Jean-Pierre's was an extra-rich double broth.
(He had bones from the eels he had caught a few days before the expedition, so he made a stock out of them
and poured that stock over the trimmings from the newly caught fish.)
If you have fish stock left over, freeze it in plastic containers, dated and identified.

Fish Stock
4 pounds fish bones and heads, gills removed.
1 onion, peeled and diced.
2 leeks, cleaned, trimmed and chopped roughly.
1 fennel bulb, sliced into chunks.
5 parsley sprigs.
5 fresh thyme sprigs.
1 bay leaf.
About 3 or 4 quarts of water, or enough to cover the bones.
Sea salt to taste.
Pinch of cayenne pepper, or to taste.

Soup
Pinch of saffron (about 20 threads).
1 cup dry white wine.
12 fingerling potatoes, peeled.
Sea salt.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil.
2 fennel bulbs, rinsed and sliced into thin strips.
3 stalks green garlic, trimmed and minced.
2 leeks, rinsed, trimmed and sliced into 1/2-inch half-moons.
2 pounds monkeyface pricklebacks or rockfish, boned and cleaned, cut into 3-inch chunks.

To Finish
6 to 8 slices good crusty country-style bread.
1 garlic clove, peeled.
Aioli (see recipe below)

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To Prepare the Stock:
Rinse the fish trimmings in cold water and put them in a large non-reactive stockpot
along with the rest of the stock ingredients (except the salt and cayenne).
Place over low heat.
Keep the stock at a bare simmer; if it boils, the stock can turn muddy and bitter.
Cook the stock, skimming of any foam that rises to the top, for 30 minutes.
Remove from the heat, strain the stock through a fine mesh sieve into a large bowl,
leaving behind and discarding the last bit of cloudy liquid and the bones, so that the stock remains clear.
Add salt and cayenne to taste.

To Prepare the Soup:
Add the saffron and white wine to the fish stock, stir, and keep warm.
Meanwhile, place a few cups of water in a small heavy pot over medium-high heat.
Once the water boils, add the potatoes and salt to taste; turn the heat to simmer and cook the potatoes
 for about 10 to 12 minutes, adding a little more water if it starts to evaporate.
When tender to the pierce of a fork, drain, set aside, and keep warm.
Warm the olive oil over medium heat in a large heavy skillet.
Add the fennel, green garlic and leeks, stir.
When the aromatics begin to brown, add the fish pieces and cook for a few minutes,
tossing the ingredients gently, then add a ladle of the stock.
Season lightly with salt.

To Serve:
Toast the bread, rubbing each slice with the garlic clove.
Reheat the stock and pour (2 cups per person) into a soup tureen; add the chunks of fish,
the potatoes and the vegetables.
Ladle into individual soup bowls with the toast, cut in half on the diagonal
and positioned on one side of the bowl with dollop of aioli on top.

Serves 6
Per Serving (without aioli):
505 calories, 45 g protein, 39 g carbohydrate, 17 g fat (3 g saturated),
 58 mg cholesterol, 1,022 mg sodium, 5 g fiber.

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Aioli
1 egg.
Pinch of sea salt.
1 tablespoon minced garlic.
Dash of white pepper.
1 cup mild extra virgin olive oil.
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.

Instructions:
Place a stainless-steel bowl on a folded kitchen towel (so it won't slide)
and add the egg, salt, garlic and white pepper to it.
Whisk until smooth.
Add the olive oil, drop by drop at first, and then in a very slow, steady stream once the mixture starts to emulsify.
Whisk until it becomes thick.
Alternatively, use a food processor or a blender.
Then add the lemon juice, a little at a time, whisking until combined.

Yields about 1 cup
Per Tablespoon:
135 calories, 0 protein, 1 g carbohydrate, 14 g fat (2 g saturated),
 13 mg cholesterol, 13 mg sodium, 0 fiber.
 

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Braised Eel With Tagliarini, Anchovies & Capers
The delightful flavor of the eel, or a substitute such as a rockfish, stands up handsomely to
 the anchovies, garlic and capers in this sauce.
This recipe includes two of Angelo Garro's foraging delicacies: eel and wild fennel.
He makes his own farro pasta, but store-bought will do just fine.

 2 pounds fresh monkeyface pricklebacks or rockfish.
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil.
4 garlic cloves, minced, or 6 stalks green garlic, finely chopped (mostly the white part).
8 anchovy fillets.
1 pound tagliarini or fettuccini.
5 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained.
1/2 cup chopped wild fennel fronds, or the feathery leaves of domestic fennel, finely chopped.
1 1/2 cups chopped Italian parsley.
1/2 cup dry white wine.
3/4 cup tomato sauce, preferably homemade.
Excellent quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling.

Instructions:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
If using monkeyface prickleback, cut it into bite-size pieces and pound with a mallet to tenderize slightly.
If using rockfish, cut it into bite-size pieces, removing and discarding any small bones.
Season with salt and pepper.
Warm the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat.
Add the garlic and sauté just until fragrant.
Add the anchovies, pressing them down with the tines of a fork or the back of a wooden spoon.
Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to directions on the box, about 7 minutes.
Meanwhile, add the fish to the skillet and brown lightly, stirring continuously for about 2 minutes.
Add the capers, fennel fronds and 1 cup of the chopped parsley; combine gently.
Splash in the white wine and stir, then add tomato sauce, stirring well to coat the fish.
Remove from the heat as you drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.
Place the skillet over medium heat and fold in the drained pasta,
adding enough pasta water to make for a juicy but not watery consistency.
Pour the pasta into a large warm bowl, season to taste with salt and pepper,
 and scatter the remaining chopped parsley over the top.
Bring a bottle of olive oil to the table to drizzle over the top.

Serves 4 to 6
Per Serving:
650 calories, 42 g protein, 64 g carbohydrate, 23 g fat (4 g saturated),
57 mg cholesterol, 956 mg sodium, 5 g fiber.
 

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Fennel Cakes
In the spring you can find wild fennel growing all over Northern California, even in cities.
Pick the dark green new interior sprouts - at least half of a brown paper shopping bag-full.
Wash them in cold water and drain on paper towels.  Store-bought fennel is not a good substitute.

 5 cups finely chopped fennel sprouts, blanched and drained.
3 eggs, beaten.
3/4 to 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese + Parmesan for topping.
1/2 to 3/4 cup breadcrumbs.
5 garlic cloves, minced, or 8 green garlic shoots.
1/2 cup chopped parsley.
1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes, or to taste.
Salt.
Extra virgin olive oil for frying.

Instructions:
Mix together the fennel, eggs, cheese, breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, red pepper flakes and salt.
Form into silver dollar-size patties.
Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet;
add as many patties as will fit in the skillet easily (do not crowd) and fry slowly.
Drain on paper towels.
Continue frying the patties, adding more oil as needed.
Layer carefully on a plate, patting off any excess oil.
Serve warm or at room temperature with a light sprinkling of grated Parmesan on top.

Serves 6 to 8 as an appetizer
Per Serving:
150 calories, 8 g protein, 10 g carbohydrate, 9 g fat (3 g saturated),
 87 mg cholesterol, 286 mg sodium, 2 g fiber.
 

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Wine Recommendations
The following wines were served at the eel feast.

Rosés
2002 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé
2002 Domaine de Fontsainte Corbieres Gris de Gris

Whites
2002 Coteaux du Languedoc Chateau Lascaux
2002 Coteaux du Languedoc Chateau La Roque

Reds
2001 Domaine Leon Barral Faugeres Jadis
2000 Domaine Les Pallieres Gigondas
2000 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rouge
2001 Domaine du Joncier Lirac

and, finally, a jug of
Preston Vineyard's Guadagni Red
(available only on Sundays at the vineyard)

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