I am inept in the kitchen, but I am married to a very ept lady, who cooks wonderful things. The latest wonderful thing is crab bisque, inspired by a dish we ate in a Sanibel restaurant in January. For some reason, the restaurants around here do not serve crab bisque, though there is lobster bisque aplenty and there is always clam chowder, which can range from watery to gummy. You will also find crab cakes on some menus, as well as crabmeat salads. But no crab bisque. So it was time for Jill to do her thing.
It started with a trip to the Food Network web site, which yielded an easy-looking recipe for something called Crabby Bisque, but it ended, as usual, with a variation on the theme. I do not exaggerate when I say that the final product gave new meaning to the term “to die for.” You may have found a useful tip or two if you’ve been reading this blog regularly, but what I am going to tell you now is the most valuable information you are likely to read this year.
Here’s what you will need:
2 15-oz cans of condensed lobster bisque, available at the supermarket under the Gordon’s Naturally Chesapeake label. (Now you see that we are dealing with crab/lobster bisque here.)
1 pint of heavy cream
1 lemon’s worth of lemon juice (squeeze a lemon; don’t buy juice)
2 dashes of tabasco
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley
2 6-oz containers of fresh crabmeat (save a small amount for garnish)
Put the works into a blender, about 1-1/2 to 2 cups at a time, and blend away.
Heat, but do not boil. Serve with crabmeat garnish
That’s it. You will bless me for sharing this gem with you, and you will wonder how anything so simple can be so delicious.
