Soup Stew, Bean or Chili 2009

Outstanding Soup, Stew, Bean Or Chili 2009: Elena’s Mediterranean Stew

Caroline Moose, the CFO for Elena’s, grew up eating cioppino, an Italian fish soup that her mother Elena Houlihan made from scratch. Moose knows a good fish stew when she tastes one, but she also knows that today’s busy cooks don’t have time to whip one up like they did in the old country. That’s why her mother’s eponymously named, Auburn Hills, Mich.-based company, started by Elena a decade ago, began making a Mediterranean Stew in 2004 based on a recipe that’s been in the family for generations.

“We make the broth out of Roman tomatoes blended with imported extra virgin olive oil, vegetarian chicken broth, Italian basil, herbs, onion and garlic,” she explains. “Then you pick up fresh seafood [such as whitefish, shrimp or mussels] at your local market, cook it and you have a great meal.”

Moose says Elena’s seafood broth allows consumers to make something with a homemade touch without having to do all the work. The family-run business also makes a Roman Gazpacho (to be poured over chopped celery, cucumber, green pepper and onion) as well as pasta sauces, flavored pastas, bread dipping olive oils, vinegars and hors d' oeuvres. Suggested retail price: $8.99/26.5-ounce. elenas.com.–D. Moss