From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering
About 6 dinner party portions
Ingredients:
- ½ stick (2oz) butter or olive oil, but butter is richer flavored
- 1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 ribs or stalks of celery, washed and finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 2 c water
- 1 x 8oz can no salt tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon gluten-free chicken stock concentrate
- 1 tablespoon gluten-free tomato ketchup
- coffee filter filled with ½ teaspoon dry thyme, 1 bay leaf, some fresh parsley stalks and tied shut
- freshly ground pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream
- grated rind of ¼ lemon
- 2 tbsp sherry
- 1/3 lb cooked, peeled salad shrimp.
- 2 x 6 oz cans of crab meat, well drained, or 8 oz fresh or frozen crab, thawed
- dash of fresh nutmeg
- dash of cayenne pepper (if you like a bite to your soup)
- Fresh, chopped parsley to garnish.
- 1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp cold water
Directions:
- Melt butter in a 3 quart non-stick pan. Add onions, garlic, carrot and celery and cook, covered over a low heat, for about 10 minutes until they soften. This is known as “sweating” the vegetables and allows more flavor to develop rather than just cooking them immediately in stock.
- Add the water, tomato sauce, stock, ketchup, coffee filter of herbs and freshly ground pepper. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook covered for about 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
- Remove herb packet and then use an immersion blender and puree the vegetable and stock mix directly in the pan. (You can also pour into a blender or food processor and puree.)
- Add the lemon rind, nutmeg, cayenne (if desired), cream and cornstarch mix.
- Add sherry and bring back to just under a boil. Simmer for 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add thawed shrimp, drained crab and simmer for 1 minute.
- Turn off heat, add parsley and let sit for a few minutes. You don’t want to boil any soup with a milk mix added as it can break up. Too much heat will also toughen the shrimp and also will prevent you from appreciating the flavor of the soup.
Tips & Alternatives: Don’t use imitation crab. You could also substitute the containers of frozen lobster. Substitute ½ – 1 cup of Chardonnay for the stock. Don’t chop raw vegetables in a food processor, as they will be chopped too small for the immersion blender to puree them. The heavy cream is the finale, and is what makes it taste like a lavish restaurant dish. If you’re lactose intolerant, use unsweetened coconut milk. The dish will not be as rich, but still very good.
Note: Always check the label to ensure ingredients are gluten-free.
