Here is what I know about Bouillabaisse: I don’t remember a Christmas Eve dinner where we ate something else. Sure, I know in my tyrant child days I wouldn’t touch the stuff, and I honestly probably ate dinner rolls and chocolate…but luckily I don’t remember those days all too well. I seriously can’t remember anything else we ever made for the day, and it’s time the recipe lives on.

Another thing: It’s always called Bouillabaisse, not Cioppino, not “Seafood Stew.” All are about the same thing, and my mom just chooses to call it the most fun and hardest to spell name of all.

Typically, people throw scallops into their Bouillabaisse, but we have never been big on them in our family so we always leave them out and add more of the “good stuff.” Shrimp, Crab, Clams, and either halibut or salmon are usually our picks. You can treat this recipe as more of a guide than anything. We tweak our recipe a little bit each year – especially the time my dad dumped an ENTIRE jar of red pepper flakes into the soup…The lid wasn’t on tight enough…and some of our guests ended up eating Kraft Mac N Cheese. Shit happens…Especially on Christmas Eve. Continue reading →