Soup - A Delicious Crab & Corn Bisque

I still remember when my workmate told me she'd be bringing me a crab bisque soup the next day. She had gotten the recipe from her mother in law and it was one of her favorites. Once I tried the soup, I knew I wanted to take that recipe and alter it to my families taste.

In a saucepan, melt 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. While the recipe says you can use either butter or margarine, there is a taste difference and I prefer the butter taste. Once melted, stir in two cups of milk and two cups of whipping cream. Add salt, white pepper and mace (a seasoning found in most grocery stores) to taste. Continue heating on medium heat until almost boiling. Stir as the soup heats. Next, add in 1/4 cup of finely chopped celery, one can of corn, drained and 1/4 cup of cracker crumbs. Reduce heat and simmer for about ten minutes. Add in one pound of imitation crab meat and two tablespoons of sherry. Heat through and serve.

I'd like to share one more variation of this soup using chicken broth:

4 cups chicken broth
1 pound imitation crab meat
2 cans creamed corn
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups chopped onion
½ cup chopped carrots
2 cups heavy cream
Salt, pepper and Tabasco to taste

Pour the chicken broth into a soup pot. Add in the vegetables and allow to cook until vegetables are soft. Allow soup to cool and puree in a blender. Strain back into the soup pot. Puree the corn and strain into the soup pot. Add in the cream, salt, pepper and Tabasco. Simmer until heated through. Add in crab and allow crab to warm. Spoon into bowls.

If you like the taste of potatoes, add in one can of potato soup and remove one can of the chicken broth.

Crab Bisque can also be made with a tomato based broth. I have a very simple crock-pot recipe for crab bisque.

Place one pound of imitation crab meat, one can of condensed tomato soup and one can of cream of asparagus soup in your crock-pot. Cook on high three hours. Uncover and add 1 cup of half and half. Re-cover and cook on high one more hour.

If you want vegetables in the soup, consider adding in carrots, celery and onions. Strain before serving to remove these vegetables.

I love serving this soup with homemade garlic bread. I use a French bread loaf. I melt the butter with garlic and onion and then brush onto the bread and toast under the broiler.

Audrey's mom always entertained when she was growing up. Audrey learned to prepare for large groups and has often entertained 15-30 people in her home at a time. You can find more great recipes at http://www.recipe-barn.com.

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