Winter Squash Crab Bisque

Soup tastes creamy and butter rich due to the smooth bits of crab and the puree with nfdm powder. Cilantro does not dominate; it surprises. I used Sharwoods mild curry. Serve as appetizer or entree. The homemade vegetable broth had much character. (220 cals, 3.7 g fat without cheese; 272, 7.8 with) * Heat peanut oil in heavy bottom soup pot over moderately hot burner; add the onion; season with a few cranks of salt and pepper; saute, stirring often. * Add cubed squash, cubed potatoes and carrot pieces. Stir to coat well with oil. Add the broths and optional chicken bouillon. Add herbs and spices. Bring slowly just to a boil; partially cover and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring ocassionally. The chunks should be ready to puree. * Puree about 1/2 of the soup. Add milk powder to the puree. Return the puree to the pot. Add hoisin sauce, and finely flaked crab meat. Simmer about 5 minutes to warm the crab. Taste and correct seasoning, if necessary. Just before serving, stir in the roughly chopped or snipped cilantro. VEG BROTH: 2 carrots, 1 turnips, 2 parsnip, 2 new potatoes, 1 fennel, 2 stalks celery, white pepper, 2 bay leaves, garni of fresh parsley and thyme sprigs.. Enough water to cover. Simmer, never boil, for 60 to 90 minutes. Let cool. Strain. Freeze in 1 or 2 cup containers. Recipe By : Pat Hanneman (Nov 1996) Posted to MC-Recipe Digest V1 #278 Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 19:38:54 -0800 (PST) From: PatH NOTES : Transfer chunks and some broth to the tall container that comes with the immersion blender and puree. Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 4219 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0