Roasted Corn and Crab Soup

Makes 8 servings

Inspired by a recipe from The Boathouse restaurant in Charleston, SC, where we had our family dinner the night before our wedding.

ingredients

1/4 lb. butter
1 each red, yellow, and green bell pepper, finely diced
1 small sweet onion, finely diced
1 jalapeno, finely diced
2 celery ribs, finely diced
1 lb. andouille sausage (linguica is good substitute, if needed)
3 oz. tasso ham
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 ears corn, shucked and kernels removed from cob (we often grill corn first to add flavor)
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. Stubbs BBQ seasoning or Emeril’s Essence
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 cups bottled clam juice or fish stock
2 cups chicken stock
Dash worcestershire
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. dry sherry
1/2 pound claw crabmeat, cleaned of any hard parts
salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp. fresh thyme, minced
1 tsp. fresh parsley, minced
dash hot sauce, to taste

directions

In large pot, melt butter over medium heat. When butter starts to foam, add bell peppers, onion, celery, garlic, sausage, tasso, and corn. Saute for 5 minutes and then add cayenne, dried thyme, oregano and BBQ seasoning. Add the flour, stirring to prevent lumps. Turn to low heat and continue cooking 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly. Slowly add clam juice and chicken stock while stirring, so no lumps form. Add worcestershire and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes. Add milk, cream and sherry and continue to heat until soup begins to thicken. Lower heat and let simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Finally, add crab and fresh herbs, add salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste, and serve.

Source: Laura DeBell