"we made this for christmas eve dinner. i was a little skeptical of the fennel -- i thought it might be overpowering, but it was AMAZING. we used the halibut versus salmon. we followed the recipe exactly with the exception of adding a few fresh thyme sprigs when making the broth. we also served it with the sourdough croutons from "fulton's fish market cioppino" recipe (also found on the foodnetwork site). i highly recommend the croutons!!!!!

we made the broth and did most of the fish prep early in the day, so when we were ready to serve, it came together very quickly. i might suggest that you have your guests seated at the table prior to adding the seafood & fish. it cooks quite quickly and you don't want it to overcook your seafood/fish as you are waiting for your guest to be seated.