Makes about 8 generous servings of 21/4 cups each

Keep in mind that the following ingredients are merely suggestions. You should go with whatever you can find that’s fresh and delicious. The cooked Dungeness crab isn’t exactly requisite, but it is a classic ingredient and while it’s in season, please consider adding it to the mix! Another fun addition would be green-lipped mussels, also known as New Zealand Greenshell mussels. Locally, they’re available frozen and on the half shell at Harry & Annette’s Fresh Fish (151 N.W. Monroe Ave.), and Market of Choice (922 N.W. Circle Blvd.).

• 3/4 pound red snapper
• 3/4 pound halibut
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 4 fresh cloves garlic, minced
• 16 ounces salsa (any salsa will do, but I prefer Pace’s “medium” picante sauce)
• 5 cans ( 141/2 oz each) diced tomatoes (see note below)
• 11/2 cups dry white wine, such as Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, or an Oregon Chardonnay
• 2 teaspoons each, dried (or 1 tablespoon each fresh): basil, thyme, marjoram, and oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 pound steamer clams or green-lipped mussels
• 2 cups fresh peeled and deveined shrimp meat
• 1 to 2 whole cooked crab, depending on their size, or about 3 cups of firm, cooked Dungeness crab meat (see note)
• Salt and additional pepper to taste

Cut the snapper and halibut into 1/2- to 1-inch chunks; set aside in refrigerator until needed.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot and saute the onions and garlic over medium-high heat until the onions are tender. Stir in the salsa, tomatoes, wine, herbs, black pepper and parsley and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened enough to have enough substance to coat a spoon. The stew base can be refrigerated at this point for several days (or even frozen for up to 4 or 5 months).

When ready to assemble the Cioppino. bring the tomato mixture to a boil, then add the fish chunks and simmer until just barely cooked through. Add the clams and cook just until the clams open (discard any clams that don’t open). Add the shrimp and crab and remove the pot from the burner; the shrimp and crab will heat through nicely and not become tough. Add salt and additional fresh ground black pepper to taste.

NOTE ON DICED TOMATOES: I use 1 can of diced tomatoes with jalapeno, and 4 cans of regular diced tomatoes. That little bit of jalapeno adds just enough zip. However, if you think you’ll be serving some very sensitive palates, just use 5 cans of regular diced tomatoes.

NOTE ON CRAB: Adding cooked crab meat is the less messy way to go, but the meat tends to disappear into the stew; whereas, if you simply break 1 (or 2 if they are small) whole cooked and cleaned crab(s) into its parts (legs, claws, and the halved or quartered body), folks can fish out a portion and break it open themselves for a real tasty treat.