Seafood/4 recipes

Seafood chowder for a crowd with sole fillets, canned clams, shrimp, and cream of potato soup. Feeds 20 people in 30 minutes using mostly pantry and freezer staples. Freezes well.

Irish cream of mussel soup steams fresh mussels in white wine and fish stock with leek and celery, then enriches the strained broth with cream for a silky, briny seafood bisque.

Sea scallops stir-fry with broccoli, napa cabbage, snow peas, and shiitakes in a star anise-spiced soy-vinegar sauce. Light Chinese seafood dinner over steamed rice.

Spaghetti and crabmeat in a slow-simmered tomato sauce with sherry, garlic, and herbs, served over angel hair pasta with fresh Parmesan. A restaurant-style Italian-American seafood pasta.

Seafood gumbo built on a butter-flour roux with shrimp, okra, tomatoes, chili powder, and Worcestershire, served over rice with filé powder. Where Louisiana bayou meets Texas ranch country.

Rich French-style cream sauce with shallots, white wine, oyster juice, and butter. A San Francisco masterchef classic that pairs beautifully with seafood and shellfish.

Spicy cilantro-lime compound butter with garlic, jalapenos, and crushed red chiles. A bold finishing butter for grilled meats, corn, seafood, and bread.

Open-faced cod sandwiches on English muffins with broiled tomato, topped with a sharp cheddar cheese sauce spiked with mustard, cayenne, and Worcestershire. A hot seafood lunch.

Fusilli bucati pasta with sauteed soft shell crabs, Anaheim and jalapeno peppers, white wine, tomato sauce, and wilted escarole. A bold Italian seafood pasta.

A quick warm herb butter dip: melted butter stirred with fresh herbs for dunking seafood, bread or steamed vegetables. Five minutes to a simple, savory dipping butter.

Kakavia is the Greek fisherman's soup built from homemade fish stock, whole fish pieces, lobster tails, and shrimp simmered with tomatoes, leeks, and potatoes. A traditional seafood soup served with crusty bread and lemon wedges.

Louisiana crawfish bread studded with chopped crawfish tails, green onions, parsley, thyme, and garlic baked into a savory quick bread. A Cajun-style bread that's part cornbread, part seafood loaf.

Seared bay scallops in a reduced grapefruit-butter sauce, plated in the center of a vegetable fried rice ring with snow peas and red pepper. Restaurant-style citrus-seafood dinner.

A rich creamy chowder with corn and sausages -- This chowder is a variation on a family recipe from an old roommate of mine. (She makes it without the sausage, and with more water). It goes very well with most seafood.

Warm scallop and bell pepper salad with cumin, lime, and coriander on Belgian endive leaves. A light, elegant seafood salad ready in 30 minutes.

A tropical spin on salsa verde with simmered tomatillos, ripe papaya, sauteed cilantro, and green onion pureed silky smooth. Low-fat, vibrant, and built for grilled chicken or seared seafood.