Extravagant Bisque

I eat a lot of soup this time of year but I rarely eat bisque soups because they are typically made with cream and are higher in fat and calories than broth based soups.  At Christmas I make an exception and I like to indulge in a bowl of Shrimp Bisque.  It's creamy and rich and oh so delicious.  I can't remember where I first found this recipe but I have been making it a long time.   I made a double batch to serve at my Christmas party this year.

Shrimp Bisque
3 Tablespoons butter                  4 plum tomatoes, diced
1 onion                                            4 cups chicken stock
1 carrot, sliced                               ½ cup bread crumbs
2 cloves garlic                                ½ cup heavy cream
2 pounds shrimp                           2 Tablespoons sherry
2 Tablespoons parsley                 cayenne pepper
salt

Melt butter in saucepan.  Add onion, carrot and garlic.

Saute 2 minutes.  Add tomatoes and broth and cook 7 minutes.

Process with an emulsion blender.  If you don't have an emulsion blender you can process it in batches in a regular blender.

 

Strain through sieve.  Use a wooden spoon to get all of the liquid out of the vegetables in the strainer.  I do this in small batches and pour the strained soup into pitchers.

Clean shrimp, reserving half.

Chop remaining shrimp into 1” pieces and add to broth with the bread crumbs.  Cook 3 minutes.

Process with blender again.  Add cream, sherry, salt and pepper.  Cook 2 minutes.

Add reserved shrimp and cook 2 minutes.  Ladle into bowls and garnish with parsley.

My kids love it when I hand the camera over to them.  They went a little crazy with pictures of me but it did help to show the process.  If your looking for a great way to start your Christmas dinner - try my shrimp bisque - it's pretty terrific.

Bon Appetit!