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Summer Seafood Supper
This summer party menu relies on fresh-from-the-Gulf ingredients, heirloom china, and a little fuss
When heat or summer showers prevent outdoor dining, hostess Julia Reed moves the party into her sunroom.
"Even in the dead of summer, people love a salty fried oyster with a cocktail," says Reed.
by Julia Reed
Photos by Becky Luigart-Stayner

Since I do most of my entertaining in New Orleans, the great majority of my recipes are geared toward the warm weather -- as are my serving pieces. Over the years, I’ve amassed a collection of silver shells, in the form of everything from ashtrays and platters to a ladle whose “bowl” is a deep scallop. One of my favorite shops is Manhattan’s Ruzzetti & Gow, whose wares include cockleshell salts and sea urchin candlesticks, and I have no less than three fish sets.

Once, in an all-night glue-gunning frenzy, I encrusted a half-dozen clay pots with shells I’d collected myself in order to create vases for a summer “shellfish” party.

By now it’s hard to tell if my tabletop bounty begat my menus or vice versa; either way, shellfish is so abundant here that it seems crazy not to serve it all the time. I rarely start a party, at any time of year, without passing some sort of oysters. One of my favorite takes on the ubiquitous fried oyster is a “deconstructed Rockefeller,” in which a crouton is spread with a fennel aioli (fennel and watercress are the primary greens in a classic Rockefeller sauce, not the spinach so often used) and topped with a crisp oyster and a tangle of herbs. Often I pair them with the old-fashioned version on the half shell -- which gives me an excuse to pull out more of my “stuff” in the form of oyster plates.

OYSTER APPETIZERS

Yield: 24 appetizers

Fennel Aioli (recipe follows)
24 (1/4-inch-thick) pieces of thinly sliced French bread, toasted
Fried Oysters (recipe follows)
Herb Topping (recipe follows)

1. Spread 1 teaspoon aioli on each bread slice, and top with an oyster and 1 teaspoon Herb Topping. Serve immediately.

Fennel Aioli
This is also terrific served with shrimp or any poached whitefish.

2 medium fennel bulbs
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced, divided
3 large pasteurized egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon each salt and white pepper to taste

1. Trim fennel bulbs and cut into thin slices. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in skillet over medium heat. Add fennel slices, vinegar, and seeds; sauté 10 minutes, stirring often. Add 1 garlic clove and remaining oil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until fennel is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.
2. Remove fennel and garlic, and place in food processor, reserving oil. (Do not use a blender.) Add remaining garlic to the food processor. Purée. With machine running, add egg yolks, 1 at a time, and process until smooth.
3. While machine is running, gradually add oil from fennel mixture in a slow, steady stream. Process until blended. Season with salt and white pepper.

Fried Oysters
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup fine fresh breadcrumbs (from a loaf of French bread)
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 dozen oysters, shucked, drained, and dried on paper towels
1 stick butter, melted
Peanut or vegetable oil

1. Mix cornmeal, breadcrumbs, and next 3 ingredients (through salt) in a shallow pan.
2. Dip oysters in melted butter and then in cornmeal mixture to coat,
placing them on a cookie sheet.
3. Pour oil to a depth of 1 inch in a heavy skillet; heat over medium heat to 375° or until a piece of bread dropped in the pan sizzles. Add oysters a few at a time, and fry until golden brown, no more than 2 minutes, turning once. Before adding more, wait for oil to reheat to 375°.
4. Drain cooked oysters on paper towels, adding more salt to taste. Repeat with remaining oysters, adding more oil as needed.

Herb Topping
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 cup chopped fresh chervil
1/3 cup chopped fresh fennel fronds
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1. Combine herbs in a medium bowl. Toss with olive oil and lemon juice until coated.
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