Herb Soup With Crab Recipes

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat and cook the shallot, stirring, until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the squash, coriander, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Stir until coated. Pour in the broth and bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the squash is very tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Carefully puree the soup with an immersion blender or in a stand blender, in batches, until very smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan and stir in the cream. Season salt and pepper. Reheat the soup before serving if necessary.
• Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add the parsley and cook, uncovered, until bright green, 30 to 45 seconds. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water and then drain and pat dry. Puree in a blender with the grapeseed oil until the oil is bright green, about 1 minute. Strain the parsley oil through a fine-mesh sieve. Do not press on the solids. Whisk the harissa and 1 tablespoon water together in a small bowl until smooth.
• Whisk the oil, lemon juice, ginger, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper together in a medium bowl. Add the crab, cilantro and mint and gently toss to combine.
• Divide the hot soup evenly among 4 serving bowls and mound some crab salad in the middle of each bowl. Drizzle each bowl with parsley oil and harissa.

Steps:

• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large saucepan, add the onion, fennel, carrot and bay leaves with a pinch of salt and cook for 10 mins until really tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 min more, then stir in the tomato purée for another 1 min. Add the brown crabmeat, saffron, brandy and some pepper, stirring until the brandy has bubbled away. Add the stock and stir until smooth. Cover with a lid and simmer for 15-20 mins or until the vegetables are soft.
• Using a hand blender, blitz the soup until smooth. Pass the soup through a sieve back into a clean saucepan, making sure you push through as much liquid as possible. Add the cream and simmer for another 5 mins - the soup should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add a few drops of lemon juice, taste and season or add more lemon if necessary, then chill until ready to serve.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Toss the croutons with the remaining oil, the lemon zest and some black pepper on a baking tray. Bake for 10 mins, tossing halfway through, until crisp and golden. Leave to cool, then store in a plastic container until ready to serve. The soup and croutons can be made up to 1 day ahead.
• To serve, reheat the soup and divide between shallow soup bowls. Spoon a mound of white crabmeat into the centre of each bowl, then drizzle with a little oil and add a few of the reserved fennel fronds. Float a few croutons on top and serve with a little extra black pepper, if you like.

Steps:

• Clean crab and crack; remove meat. Reserve shells and crab butter (gray-green coating inside crab shell). Refrigerate crab meat. Place shells and crab butter in 8- to 10-quart stockpot. Add water, clam juice, onion halves, carrot, thyme and cayenne. Boil over medium heat until liquid is reduced to 9 cups, about 1 1/2 hours. Strain stock.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and garlic and sauté until tender, about 6 minutes. Add curry powder and ground turmeric and stir 1 minute. Add crab stock, butternut squash and potato. Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 35 minutes. Transfer mixture to blender in batches and puree until smooth. Return to Dutch oven. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill. Rewarm before continuing.)
• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in large skillet. Add all bell peppers and sauté until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add bay scallops and sauté until almost cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add reserved crab meat and green peas and cook until heated through, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Ladle squash puree into bowls. Top with seafood mixture and serve.