Anthony Newley's Bouillabaisse Marseille

Anthony Newley's Bouillabaisse Marseille

1/2 cup onion flakes
1/4 cup celery flakes
1/2 tsp. instant minced garlic
2/3 cup water
1/4 cup olive (or salad oil)
1 qt. water
1 lb. canned tomatoes, broken
1 bottle dry white wine (or two 8-oz. bottles clam juice)
1 cup diced carrots
2 tbsps. minced fresh parsley
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. thyme leaves, crumbled
1/2 tsp. fennel seed, crushed
1/4 tsp. saffron, crumbled
3 1/2 lbs. assorted ready-to-cook fish, cut into pieces (eel, halibut, red snapper, perch, cod, bass and Spanish mackerel)

1 small (1 to 1 1/2 lb.) lobster (or 1 lb. lobster tail, cut into chunks)
1 dozen clams, scrubbed
1 dozen mussels, scrubbed
3 (3 inches each) strips orange peel

1. Mix onion flakes, celery flakes and minced garlic with the 2/3 cup of water. Let stand 10 minutes to rehydrate. Heat oil in a large pot.

2. Add rehydrated vegetables and saute 3 minutes. Add the 1 qt. water, tomatoes, wine (or clam juice, carrots, parsley, bay leaf, salt, thyme, fennel and saffron. Simmer 15 minutes.

3. Add the seafood and orange, cook covered 15 minutes (or until fish is barely tender). Serve in soup bowls with toasted French bread if desired. Serves 8 to 10.