Roasted Red Pepper and Crab Soup

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 60 min
Servings: 6
Yield: 6 servings

Description

This sweet red pepper crab soup features tender potatoes and flakes of juicy crabmeat accented with cayenne, basil, and garlic for a creamy bisque.

Ingredients

6 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into quarters
1 (32 ounce) carton chicken broth
1 large potato, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 quart half-and-half cream
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper to taste
1 pound cooked crabmeat, flaked

Directions

1 Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.
2 Place red bell pepper quarters skin-side up onto a broiler pan or baking sheet.
3 Cook under the preheated broiler until skins have blackened. Transfer bell peppers to a brown paper bag or a covered bowl and allow to steam until skins loosen, about 10 minutes.
4 Peel skins off and discard. Coarsely chop peppers and place into a large saucepan along with chicken broth and potato. Bring to a boil, then add half-and-half, salt, garlic powder, basil, and cayenne pepper. Return to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until potatoes have softened, about 45 minutes.
5 Purée soup in batches in a blender until smooth. Pour puréed soup into another saucepan and stir in crabmeat. Heat over medium heat until warmed through, about 5 minutes.