Lobster Bisque

I have loved lobster since the very first time my parents took me camping and I tried it at the campground restaurant, I was 8 months old. Growing up in Maine lobster was a summer staple, to us its as important as burgers and hot dogs on the grill. Oh how I love lobster, and warm butter, together, oh.em.gee. One of my favorite ways to eat lobster is in a chowder. I love having a bowl of nice, warm, lobster stew and some oyster crackers. Is there anything better than lobster mixed with heavy cream? I think not. 

This past October we went to a friends wedding and as part of the menu they had lobster bisque. I died. It was so delicious. In fact, they're entire menu was delicious but nothing beats the lobster bisque! My husband has been dreaming of it sense too and begging me to add lobster bisque to the menu but I was very hesitant as lobster is not very cheap, unless bought off the boat. I decided to go ahead and add it to the menu for Valentine's day. My husband was excited to make it that even and needless to say, there were no leftovers. I kinda figured that would happen though!

Lobster Bisque by Fred McClelland

Ingredients

• 3 or 4 lobsters, depending on how much meat you want and the weight of the lobsters
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 leek, halved lengthwise
• 1 onion
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• grated orange zest (about half an orange)
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup cognac
• 3 tbsp flour
• 4 cups heavy cream
• 1 tsp whole peppercorns
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Cook the lobsters if they are uncooked. You can do this by boiling a pot of water, adding the lobsters head first and cooking until bright red.
2. Let cool and then chop up the lobster; remove the claws and tail. Clean out the lobster meat from the claws and tails and chop it up roughly into bite sized pieces.
3. Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large pot over medium heat and melt 3 tbsp butter in it. Add the chopped lobster bodies and heads and their juices, the leeks, onion, thyme, orange zest and the tomato paste. 
4. Cook for about 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and carefully pour in 1/4 cup cognac. Ignite the cognac with a long kitchen match and let the alcohol burn off. Return to the heat, sprinkle in the flour, stir, and cook for another 2 minutes. 
5. Add water to cover and stir up all the browned bits on the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Add the cream and bring to a boil. Immediately decrease the heat and gently simmer until the soup is reduced and thickened, about 30 to 45 minutes.
6. Strain into a clean pot and season with salt and pepper if needed. Add the chopped lobster meat.
7. To serve, ladle the bisque into warmed soup bowls and enjoy!
   

Tortellini Soup

It was supposed to snow yesterday. Everyone said it was going to snow. When I made the menu last week I put down tortellini soup for Wednesday because it was going to snow and nothing is better on a snowy day than hot soup for dinner. It never snowed. I still made the soup and it was delicious but it would have been better with some snow. 

I love tortellini! I love pasta in general but it's extra good when stuffed with cheese or the like. Yum! Is there anything better than tortellini? I think not! When I came across this recipe I knew I had to make it simply because it had tortellini and I have a slight obsession with tortellini. Mmm!

Tortellini Soup by The Well-Fed Newlyweds

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 whole small onion, minced
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1 qt low-sodium chicken broth
• 15oz can of whole tomatoes
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 9oz tortellini (fresh or frozen)
• 3 cups fresh spinach, chopped
• Parmesan cheese, to serve

Directions

1. In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion. Cook until the onion is softened and the garlic has turned light gold, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the oregano, broth, tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. (You can break up the tomatoes with your fingers as you add them to the pot, or break them up with a spoon once you’ve added them to the soup.)
3. Bring the soup to a boil and add the tortellini. Cook according to the package directions.
4. One minute before the tortellini are done, add the spinach. Stir to combine.
5. When the tortellini are cooked, remove the pot from the heat immediately so they do not overcook. Season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
6. Serve the soup immediately, topped with grated Parmesan cheese.

Chicken Tortilla Soup with Lime

I got this recipe out of Rachael Ray 365: No repeats. I'm usually not a big fan of Rachael's cooking, it usually taste kind of bland to me, but what do you expect for making dinner in 30 minutes? I once ate at this delicious Mexican restaurant and had the chicken tortilla soup, it's one of my favorites so when I came across this recipe I decided to give it a try. It was surprisingly good and had a lot of flavor. I almost messed up the recipe but after a reminder from my husband that I dont know to follow it word for word, I was able to quickly save it and make it yummy.

Ingredients
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 lbs chicken tenders
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, minced
- 2 celery ribs, finely chopped
- 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 2 cups yellow corn tortilla chips
- 2 tsp hot sauce
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 1/2 c sour cream
- 1/2 c fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
- 4 scallions, white & green parts thinly sliced
- salt & pepper
- zest & juice from 2 limes

::Directions::

- Preheat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat and add the extra virgin olive oil.

- Chop the chicken tenders into bite size pieces and season with salt & pepper, then add to the soup pot.

- Lightly brown the chicken, 3 to 4 minutes, then add the garlic, bell pepper, jalapeno, onions, celery, cumin, coriander, salt & pepper. Continue to cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.

- While that is cooking, place the tortilla chips into a food processor and process until well ground. If you dont have a food processor place the chips into a sealable storage bag and crush with rolling pin. Add the ground tortilla chips to the soup pot and stir to combine.

- Add the chicken stock and bring the soup to a simmer *. Simmer the soup for 15 minutes.

- Ladle the soup into bowls & garnish with the sour cream. Pass the lime zest, chopped cilantro, and scallions in shallow bowls for each person to add to taste. **

* In case you noticed, the recipe never says what to do with the hot sauce, silly Rachael! This is when I would add it (I actually didnt noticed until after I cooked and ate dinner that I forgot to add it).
** I added half a lime juice to the soup, along with a handful of cilantro and scallions half way into the simmering process.

creamy broccoli soup

Broccoli soup is one of my favorite soups, its so delicious on a cold fall day. This recipe is also delicious!!

Ingredients
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 slices of bacon, chopped
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme
- salt and pepper
- Hot Sauce
- 2 10 ounce boxes of frozen chopped broccoli *
- 1 quart of chicken stock
- ½ cup of heavy cream or half and half

- 1/4 cup cup parsley
- Zest and juice of one lemon
- 1 cup of shredded sharp Cheddar
- 3 tbsp chopped fresh chives

Directions::
- Heat a large soup pan over medium heat and add the extra virgin olive oil.

- Add the bacon and cook until crisp. Remove the crispy bacon and let it drain on a paper towel.

- Add the onions, garlic and thyme to the pot and season with salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Cook, stirring frequently until the onions are tender.

- Add the broccoli and heat thoroughly. Transfer the onions and broccoli ** to the food processor with ½ cup of chicken stock and puree until smooth. ***

- Add the pureed mixture back to the pan and then add the remaining chicken stock and cream. Bring to a simmer and cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

- To finish the soap add the lemon zest and juice and stir to combine. Dish up and Serve. ****

* I used fresh broccoli, about 3-4 cups.
** I added some of the bacon to the blender also.
*** Next time I will leave some out so its chunky, we prefer chunky soup.
**** I added this to bread bowls and it was delicious! My 2 y/o gobbled it up.