Crab Bisque with Avocado, Tomato & Corn Relish

Preparation

1. To prepare relish: Combine avocado, corn, tomato, lime juice, salt and pepper in a small bowl; toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature while you prepare the bisque.
2. To prepare bisque: Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add corn, onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring often, until the onion and pepper have softened, about 5 minutes. Add potato and paprika and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add sherry and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the liquid has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Add stock (or broth) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are very tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Working in two batches, puree the vegetable mixture in a blender or food processor. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Return the puree to the saucepan; stir in milk, crab and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve each portion of bisque with about 1/4 cup relish; sprinkle with additional paprika, if desired.

Tips & Notes

• Ingredient Notes: Smoked paprika is made from ground smoke-dried red peppers. It’s available in some large supermarkets with other spices and at tienda.com.
• Sherry is a type of fortified wine originally from southern Spain. Don’t use the “cooking sherry” sold in many supermarkets—it can be surprisingly high in sodium. Instead, get dry sherry that’s sold with other fortified wines at your wine or liquor store.
• Tips: To remove corn kernels from the cob, stand an ear of corn on one end and slice the kernels off with a sharp knife.
• Crabmeat (already removed from the shell) can be purchased canned, in shelf-stable pouches, frozen or pasteurized. Pasteurized usually has the best flavor; look for it in the fresh seafood section of the market. Crabs from both the U.S. and Canada are considered good choices for the environment.

Nutrition