Creamy Lobster Bisque with a Touch of Sherry

Lobster Season in Florida and the Caribbean is in full swing. We were lucky to have purchased quite a bit of Lobster on the docks from the local fishermen on a recent trip to the Bahamas. It has been a real treat. I have a hard time throwing anything away, so I freeze all of the shells until I am ready to make lobster bisque. It may look or sound complicated, but it actually is just a lot of yummy ingredients simmering together for an hour without any complications and not requiring any attention. Then strained, blended, cream stirred in and served with a swig of sherry. Use Maine lobster instead if that is your preference. When the family eats out at a local restaurant for their two for one lobster night, I always bring the shells home to make the lobster stock to have on hand.

Prep Time : 25 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

3 1 lb lobsters, whole preferred

1 large onion, quartered

2 whole carrots, cut in half

2 stalks celery, cut in half

3 whole garlic cloves

2 chicken bouillon cubes

4 bay leaves

10 sprigs parsley

6 whole allspice berries

1 tsp whole black peppercorns

4 plum tomatoes, chopped

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried tarragon

3 Tbs tomato paste

¼ tsp cayenne

1 ½ cup wine

1 Tbs light brown sugar

1 ¾ cup heavy cream

1 ½ Tbs sherry

3 Tbs butter

2 Tbs flour

For lobster topping:

The pre-cooked meat that you boiled

3 Tbs butter

1 tsp chopped parsley

1 tsp minced garlic

Chopped chives to top

Optional:

Sprigs of fresh parsley, or tarragon or thyme or edible flowers are pretty additions to top the bisque.

Directions:

Bring a large stockpot ⅔ full of water to a boil. Add the tsp of salt and the lobsters. Boil for 5 minutes. Remove the lobsters from the pot. Twist head off if not using just tails. Remove the meat from the lobsters by cutting through the shell vertically either with kitchen shears or a knife. Shears are easier. If using Maine lobster, not Caribbean lobster then you will need to crack the claws with a hammer to remove the meat. Once the meat is removed then set the partially cooked lobster meat aside and refrigerate while your stock simmers.

Add all of the lobster shells back to the pot, including heads and claws if you have them. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, bouillon, bay leaves, allspice, black pepper, parsley sprigs, plum tomatoes, thyme, tarragon, tomato paste and cayenne to the pot. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes uncovered. Add the wine, simmer for another 30 minutes. Add water if needed to keep the lobster shells submerged.

After one hour, turn off the heat. Pour the stock through a strainer into another clean pot. Pick out the lobster shells, the peppercorns, the bay leaves and the allspice berries from the strainer and discard. Add everything else back to the pot. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup well. You can also blend the soup in a blender, but you will need to do it in small amounts, filling the blender only half full as a warm soup can cause the blender to explode. Melt the 3 Tbs butter in a small fry pan, add the 2 Tbs flour and whisk well briefly. Warm the heavy cream in the microwave. Add the warmed cream to the butter flour mixture, and let simmer for a minute stirring constantly until thick. This is what is called a basic roux and it is what will thicken your soup. Add the cream, flour butter mixture to your soup. Stir well with a whisk for a minute. Bring the soup to a simmer and let simmer about 5 minutes until the soup thickens. Stir often. When thick, adjust with salt and pepper to taste and add the sherry.

Cut the lobster meat into chunks. Melt the butter in a frying pan, add the garlic and parsley, then the lobster. Stir for a minute. Now your meat is ready for the soup. Pour your soup into your serving bowls. Top with lobster. You can use a squeeze bottle or a baggie with a small part of a corner snipped off to drizzle on extra cream as it is very pretty over the reddish, orange soup. Sprinkle with chives and or other fresh herbs or edible flowers. I have topped mine with tarragon sprigs with flowers. Serve.

*Note - If you have left over soup. Stir it into mashed potatoes instead of milk for a killer, rich side dish on another occasion.