San Francisco-Style Cioppino

It's traditional to up the thick tomato and garlic sauce with lots of extra-sour sourdough bread. This is supposed to be the original recipe, dating back to 1941 in San Francisco.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil or salad oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 large green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped
2/3 cup chopped parsley
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (28 oz) tomatoes
1 cup dry red or white wine
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dry basil
1/2 tsp dry oregano leaves
12 clams in shell, suitable for steaming, scrubbed
1 lb large shrimp, (30 per lb), shelled & deveined
2 live or cooked large Dungeness crab (about 2 lbs each), cleaned and cracked

Instructions:

In 6-8 quart pan over medium heat, combine oil, onion, garlic, bell pepper and parsley; cook, stirring often, until onion is soft. Stir in tomato sauce, tomatoes (break up with spoon) and their liquid, wine, bay leaf, basil, and oregano. Cover and simmer until slightly thickened, about 20 minutes.

To broth, add clams, shrimp and crab. Cover and simmer gently until clams pop open and shrimp turn pink, about 20 minutes. Ladle hot broth and some of each shellfish into large bowls. Serve with warm sourdough bread.

Credits: Best of Sunset Magazine