Categories: Soups/stews, Greek, Fish/sea 
      Yield: 8 servings 
  
           Karen Mintzias                           Salt 
      1 c  Sliced onions or scallions               Freshly ground black pepper 
           -OR- leeks                          4 lb Fish (3 or 4 kinds) * 
    1/2 c  Olive oil                                -- cleaned and sliced 
      4    Tomatoes                            1    Lobster (optional) 
           -- peeled, seeded & chopped              -- cut up & claws cracked 
    1/2    Stalk fennel or celery              1 lb Shrimp; peeled & deveined 
           -- sliced                           1 lb Scallops (optional) 
      3    Sprigs fresh parsley                     -OR- Mussels in shells 
      1    Bay leaf                                 -- (scrubbed) 
      2    Sprigs fresh thyme                  8 sl Bread (thick); toasted 
      1 c  Dry white wine                           Croutons 
      5 c  -Water, more if necessary       
  
  * Fish for poaching: bass, cod, hake, haddock, halibut, trout, pollack, 
  snapper, rockfish, whiting, etc.) 
   
  In a soup pot with a wide bottom, saute the onions in the oil, without 
  browning, until soft.  Add the tomatoes, fennel, herbs, wine, and water and 
  bring to a boil.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and simmer for 45 
  minutes.  Pour the stock into a large bowl through a sieve, squeezing all 
  the pulp from the vegetables before discarding the fibers remaining in the 
  sieve.  Return the soup stock to the pot and bring to a boil. 
   
  Meanwhile, lightly salt the fish and let stand for 10 minutes, then rinse 
  with water and lower into soup, adding water only if needed to cover the 
  fish.  Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, then add the lobster. Cover 
  and simmer 5 minutes longer, then add the shrimp and scallops or mussels 
  and simmer an additional 10 minutes.  Taste and adjust the seasonings. 
   
  Arrange the toast slices in large soup plates.  Serve the varied fishes and 
  broth in each bowl, hot, with croutons in a separate plate. 
   
  NOTE: Kakavia is frequently made in the following variation: Cook 2 to 3 
  fish with the vegetables and strain with the vegetables to make a thicker 
  stock.  Continue to cook the remaining seafood as described above. 
   
  Source: The Food of Greece, by Vilma Liacouras Chantiles 
   
  Typing errors courtesy of: Karen Mintzias