coming home, leaving, and home plate

i woke up at 5 this morning. so many visions of reaching and arriving home.  

and i wondered, what is home for you?

to italian cats, a welcoming doorway. and to us, the same?

 

perhaps a lovely and coveted ingredient, at last at hand.

 

but first, is it the courage to step away from your known path? no map.

 

picking herbs along the way. collecting strange eggs.

 

simple ingredients. being with the moment. not planning. too much. 

 

 and being thankful for the plate, set before you. shells opening with new tastes.

la soupe de poissons des rôches - spicy provençal fish soup

(from association cuisine et tradition in arles. erick and madeleine vedel. but good wherever you are, speak to your fishmonger as they suggest.)

a recipe that succeeds every time.  it is based on the small fish caught amidst the rocks in the shallows off the northern shore of the mediterranean.  these are primarily herbivore fish.  there is also the variant of small fish caught in the big nets along with the major catch of tuna and sword fish and more out at sea (soupe de chalut). though the fish, rascasse, considered essential to this soup is unobtainable other than in the mediterranean... you can still approximate a delicious fish soup at home with the help of your fish monger. you want the richest flavor base possible.

this soup is special as a first course, or quite nourishing simply with salad and good crusty bread.

for 6 persons

preparation time : 1 hour ; cooking time 1 hour

one kilogram (2.2 lbs) small whole fish with a wide mixture.  the classic mixture in provence includes the rascasse (scorpion fish), the grondin (gurnard) , flying fish, merlan (whiting), lotte (angler or monk fish), st. pierre (john dory), rouget (red mullet), sea cicadas (like small cray fish). you might try adding some lobster shells or heads, some small crabs, shrimp, etc., to improve and enrich the flavor.

5 tablespoons olive oil (5 soup spoons)
2 sliced onions
1 chopped tomato
2 liters (1/2 gallon) water
2 crushed and minced garlic cloves
1 branch of fresh dill (you can replace this with fresh fennel, or even one star anise)
1 branch of thyme
sea salt
.2 grams of saffron ( a few threads)

in a large casserole dish, pour in the olive oil and add the sliced onions, let simmer till translucent, then add the fish (head, fins, scales and all -- only the largest fish, over 6 inches, need to be gutted). cook and brown for about 4-5 minutes till some of the flesh starts to fall from the bones. add the tomato, the water, the crushed garlic, the dill and thyme branches (or the star anise), a pinch of coarse sea salt.

simmer for at least a half hour, if not a good hour, as needed, you can add more water, to keep all the ingredients covered.

while the soup is bubbling away, prepare the rouille and the croutons.

(the saturday market in arles)

the rouille  (spicy, garlicky mayonnaise)

1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon

dijon

mustard (smooth)
1/2 cup olive oil (159 ml.)
pinch of salt
2 pureed garlic cloves
lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon paprika for color (3 grans)
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper in powder (or a ground cayenne pepper) (3 grams)

prepare the pureed garlic : on a small plate, squeeze the lemon juice, sprinkle the pinch of fine salt, take a sharp pronged fork and place the prongs flat on the plate, take a peeled garlic clove (the larger the easier to handle) and scrape it back and forth on the tips of the prongs.  you will produce a fine puree that will be lightly cured by the acid of the lemon juice, ideal for cold sauces and salad dressings.

in a round-bottomed bowl place your egg yolk and the teaspoon of mustard with the pinch of salt.  take a fork or whisk (as you prefer) in one hand, and the olive oil in the other, and as you stir gently and continuously, pour in the olive oil in a steady thin stream, adding it and mixing it into the egg yolk mixture.  when all the olive oil is in, test for thickness.  if the mayonnaise is still a bit on the runny side, add more olive oil, gently until it thickens permitting your fork to nearly stand straight.  add your pureed garlic, your paprika and your hot pepper, blend them all in.  taste for hotness.  if you¹d like more garlic or pepper, by all means, add them in.

the croutons are simply prepared by taking day old baguette, slicing it and toasting it lightly in the oven.

if an hour has passed, your soup is ready to strain.  take a vegetable strainer and bit by bit pass the soup through.  you want to have a smooth broth with a bit of pureed fish in it.  take your strained soup and place it back in a casserole dish.  bring up to a boil again and let simmer 5 minutes.  (this is an essential step).

pour the soup into your soup server, add the saffron and swirl it around, bring to the table.

at the table, each diner should have a shallow soup bowl and a couple croutons.  additional condiments are several raw peeled garlic cloves, grated gruyere or swiss cheese, and the rouille.  each person should take a garlic clove and scrape it on their croutons.  then take a spoonful of the rouille and dab it on the croutons.  then serve a ladle or two of the soup into their bowl, and then they can sprinkle as they want some grated cheese.  a few grains of coarse salt sprinkled on top may be good too.