Silky Shrimp Bisque

This recipe is adapted from Tyler Florence's Ultimate Shrimp Bisque which can be accessed from the Food Network site. Living in Japan, I simply have to adapt most all recipes for what ingredients that I can access, but with this one, I got pretty lucky.

 - Shell-on Shrimp (about 1.5 pounds)
- 1 orange
- Olive oil
- 3 TBsp unsalted butter
- 2 leeks (trimmed and cleaned)
- onion (halved)
- Carrot (peeled and chunked)
- 3 fresh thyme leaves
- 2 TBsp tomato paste
- 1/4 cognac (that's all I can get here... but maybe you can find brandy)
- 3 TBsp flour
- 4 C heavy cream
- salt, pepper and seasonings of your choice - I use some Pampered Chef Three onion and I do go a bit heavy on the salt, as I feel it's needed.

For the shrimp:
- damp skewers, Old Bay Bay, Paprika

Garnish: Chives and parsley and orange zest

OK, this soup is a bit labor intensive, but is worth it. Use the extra shrimp to make this a complete meal and add some fresh bread and a hearty salad, and you've got a fancy meal to serve to guests.

First set of your time... peeling the shrimp. I was able to buy a bag of frozen shrimp that were already deveined, so that does save you some time. Separate the shrimp from the shells and set aside.

Now you're going to make a roux that really will look pretty bad, but you're not going to end up using those chunks of veggies and shrimp peels in the actual soup, so just bear with it.

Add the olive oil and butter to a large stock pan. Add in the shrimp shells and the chunked veggies (onion, carrots, leeks, thyme and the 2 TBsp of paste). Saute for about 10 minutes. Like I said, it doesn't look pretty.

Remove the pot from the heat and pour in the cognac,and then add the flour, stirring for about 2 minutes. Now cover with water, 2 to 3 cups ensuring you have all the chunks from the pan. Add the heavy cream (4C) and simmer on low, stirring occasionally. You can actually leave it on the stove while you prepare your salad, bread and wait for your guests to arrive.

This pot will soon be drained so that only the flavored cream remains

Once you're ready for the final stage of the soup, you will need another big pot and a large strainer. I need help when doing this, but it can be done alone. Strain all those chunks and shells; you are just left with the heavy cream bisque. Leave it on the stove top and return to heat when you're ready to serve.

Now, I like to use the extra shrimp to make this a meal. I skewered the shrimp and then seasoned with paprika and Old Bay Seasoning. I cooked them in the oven for about 5 minutes (depending on the size and what sort of oven you have). I think the skewers add a nice touch to the presentation and make the meal just that much more hearty.

While you are making the skewers, don't forget to season the rest of the shrimp and then toss in with the bisque, heat so they cook (about 5 minutes as well). Check for seasoning... I really go heavy on the salt at this point.

Zest your orange and serve your silky bisque topped with some zest, chives and/or parsley (and those skewers if you have the serving dishes to accommodate).