Red Pepper Bisque with Citrus Crab Salad

This soup can be served with or without the salad, or the salad can be served on the side. Either way the colors and textures offer a rich and delicious dish.

Serves 8

Ingredients:

  • ½ pound lump crabmeat
  • Juice of ½ lime
  • 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
  • 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
  • Dash of Tabasco hot sauce
  • Kosher salt and Cayenne pepper to taste
  • 8 red bell peppers, chopped plus 3 whole peppers for roasting
  • ½ large onion, chopped
  • ½ leek, white and light green parts chopped
  • ½ head garlic, cloves peeled
  • ½ rib celery, chopped
  • ½ cup brandy
  • 2 quarts vegetable stock or water
  • Sachet of bay leaf, thyme and peppercorns, wrapped in cheesecloth
  • Garnish with 2 tablespoons avocado, diced and lime zest

    Instructions:

    For the salad: combine the crabmeat, lime juice, 2 T olive oil and cilantro. Season to taste with Tabasco, salt and cayenne. Set aside.

    Preheat broiler to high. Cut top and bottom off pepper, remove seeds and veins. Slice into 4 pieces and place skin side up onto cookie sheet. Roast peppers until charred. Place in a paper bag and close tightly. Allow to cool. Peel the skin from the peppers and set aside. If grilling other food, place peppers skin side down over a medium high prepared grill and grill until charred. Proceed with instructions.

    Add 3 tablespoons olive oil to a large stock pot set over low heat, then add the chopped raw peppers, onion, leek, garlic and celery. Cook about 20 minutes until very soft but not browned. Pour the brandy into the pan to deglaze and increase the heat to medium and reduce liquid. Add the vegetable stock and herb sachet. Simmer 1 hour.

    Add the reserved roasted peppers to the soup and puree carefully since soup is very hot. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and season to taste with additional salt and pepper. Finish with a dash of brandy.

    To assemble, arrange avocado dice at the bottom of each soup bowl, place the crab salad in the center. Top the salad with lime zest and pour the soup around the salad.