Fish Marechiara

 This is a great dish that is easier than it sounds. Use any fresh dense fish, like grouper, red snapper, sea bass, even fresh cod.

Ingredients
1 pound Fresh Fish (Grouper, red snapper, sea bass) Cut in to serving size portions and lightly salt and pepper.
1 dozen fresh littleneck clams (or mussels or both)
1 small can black pitted olives sliced and liquid drained.
1/2 cup fresh parsley chopped well.
2 medium onions peeled and chopped.
2-4 large cloves of Garlic thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon(s) each of salt, pepper and ground cayenne pepper, Or to taste
1 can whole plum tomatoes (29 ounces) Broken up with your fingers
1 Tbsp. Fresh oregano (or ½ Tbsp. dried)
2 Tbsp. Capers


Directions
In a non stick deep frying pan that will accommodate all the ingredients including the fish, saute onions, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, oregano, olives and capers in the olive oil on medium heat for 4 minutes.
Add the 1 can of tomatoes and cook on medium heat for 1 minute.
Lower flame to simmer, add pieces of fish and unopened clams into sauce cover and cook on low for 20-30 minutes until fish is cooked through, stirring occasionally and spooning sauce over fish.
Discard any clams that failed to open. Serve over angel hair pasta. Makes 2 good size servings.

The Love of Crusty Bread

Just returned from a wonderful two week trip in Portugal. The scenery, history, and people were excellent, but food-wise it was some what disappointing. We expected better fish, but only found it to be mediocre. The bread on the other hand was good at almost all the restaurants. You are charged for bread and butter, and we expect our butter budget for the 2 weeks was around $75.00, because all four of us ate bread and butter with every meal. 

The above photo was from a daily market in the small coastal town of Nazare. The different shaped crusty loaves look so inviting.

While food is better in France and Italy, (and maybe even Spain), we found the red wines of the Douro valley to be excellent. The reserves from 2009 or older could stand up against some serious contenders. One winery we visited sold their reserve for 11 euros per bottle, that we later saw in a restaurant for 47 euros. Very sorry I only brought one bottle home. Of course the Douro is known as the source of all port wines, but they are making some great reds and whites as well. The scenery was spectacular, with the terraced vineyards dropping steeply to the Douro River. This area hasn't been overwhelmed with tourists yet, which is one of the reasons we chose to stay there for a few days. The lovely town of Lamego is a perfect example.