Low-carbon seafood stew

This eco-friendly recipe comes to us from Preeti Mistry, Chef at San Francisco's de Young Museum for Bon Appétit Management Company.

Editor's note: The recipe includes chardonnay wine for flavor. Depending on your location in the U.S., domestic wine isn't always the best choice. Several experts suggest that for people living west of the Mississippi River, wines from California, Oregon, and Washington State are the more eco-friendly choice. For those living in the east, wines from the eastern U.S. and from Italy, Spain, and France are more carbon-conscious.

Ingredients:
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 lb. local fish bones
2 medium size onions, diced
1 jumbo carrot, diced
2 bulbs fennel, diced
¼ cup chopped garlic
1 bunch thyme, picked & chopped
1 bunch oregano, picked & chopped
2 Meyer lemons, thinly sliced
2 cups chardonnay wine
2 fresh bay leaves
2 liters tap water

1 lb. fingerling potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces

½ cup extra virgin olive oil
4 medium sized shallots, finely diced
2 tbsp. salt
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 lb. local mussels, cleaned
1 lb. local clams, cleaned

Bring olive oil to a medium heat in a large sauce pan. Add fish bones, onions, carrots, and fennel sauté 10 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, oregano, and lemon slices, and continue cooking until bones and vegetables begin to brown. Turn heat to high and add wine. Scrape pot to release flavor, and let simmer until alcohol has burned off. Add water and bay leaves, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring potatoes to boil and simmer until cooked through.

Let broth cool and then puree in batches in blender. Strain broth and set aside.

Heat second portion of olive oil in large sauce pan. Add shallots and garlic and simmer on medium heat for 2 minutes. Add mussels, clams, cooked potatoes, and fish broth, and bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium. Simmer 8 minutes or until shells open, then add parsley and garlic.

Yield: 4 entrée servings

Chef Preeti's Thoughts

I chose the seafood stew because I have always been a fan of using every part of the protein — in this case, flavorful bones from local fish. They are instrumental in creating a savory base for the broth, which is complemented nicely by the more subtle flavors of local herbs and spring vegetables.

Paired with the fragrant and floral tones of a chardonnay and the natural tartness of Meyer lemons, the result is a hearty, aromatic stew with rich and complex layers of flavor that is light enough to enjoy in the spring, when tomatoes — the more typical base for a seafood stew — are out of season.