Mother's Cioppino

Ingredients

• Crostini:
• 1 (1-pound) loaf French bread baguette, cut into 16 slices
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Cioppino:
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 3 cups clam juice
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 (26-ounce) bottle tomato-and-basil pasta sauce (such as Bertolli)
• 16 littleneck clams
• 16 small mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 pound cod or other lean whitefish fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cups torn spinach

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. To prepare crostini, place bread slices on a large baking sheet; brush with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
3. To prepare cioppino, heat 2 teaspoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add crushed red pepper and garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Stir in clam juice and next 5 ingredients (clam juice through pasta sauce.) Add clams and mussels. Cover and cook 10 minutes or until shells open. (Discard any unopened shells.) Add wine and next 4 ingredients (wine through shrimp); simmer 5 minutes or until fish and shrimp are done. Stir in spinach. Serve with the crostini.