Recipe: Olive Garden Seafood Torcello

OLIVE GARDEN SEAFOOD TORCELLO

1 pound cod filets
FOR THE BECHAMEL SAUCE:
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup straight sherry (not dry)
FOR SERVING:
6 ounces dry radiatore or spirelli pasta, cooked and drained
1 (6 ounce) can chopped clams, drained
6 ounces langostinos or rock shrimp, cooked
6 ounces crabmeat, picked over
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

2 quarts boiling salted water

TO PREPARE THE COD FILETS:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.

Bake the cod filets, uncovered, for 5 to 6 minutes, only until the cod flakes easily. Remove from the oven immediately to prevent overcooking. When cooled, break the fillets in half, lengthwise, then break each half into approximately 1-inch pieces and set aside.

TO MAKE THE BECHAMEL SAUCE:
In a heavy non-aluminum 3-quart pot, melt the butter, add the flour and cook on moderate heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly with a wire whisk. Do not allow the flour to brown. Add the milk and salt and bring to just below the boiling point, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and keep warm (180 degrees F).

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat until fragrant, then saute the garlic only until white throughout. Add the sauteed garlic to the warm Bechamel Sauce.

Add the sherry to the pan in which the garlic was sauteed, simmer strongly for 1 minute, then add it to the warmed sauce.

TO SERVE:
Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Place the bechamel/garlic/pasta/sherry mixture back onto low heat for a few minutes, then add the cooked cod, clams, langostinos or shrimp, crabmeat and chopped parsley to the warm bechamel sauce and stir all ingredients thoroughly. Serve immediately.

Source: The Olive Garden