Delicious and decadent, this soup wins on both accounts. Speaking of winning, this soup took away Best Appetizer at the Cancer Services of Greater Baton Rouge Capital Chefs Showcase. Anne and her team prepared 800 portions of this soup to rave reviews. The dish was finished with Spiced Creme Fraiche, Garlic Croutons and Cinnamon Spiced Candied Bacon. The soup is delicious with the accoutrement but perfectly lovely without. Make it yourself (perhaps not 800 portions) and prepare to be rewarded with compliments and requests for seconds.
Adapted from Teresa B. Day and The Advocate
Ingredients for the Soup:
Makes about 8 or 9-1/2 cup servings
1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tsp BBQ Shrimp Seasoning
2 lbs yellow squash, trimmed and roughly chopped
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp salt
2 Tbl Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cups Chicken or Vegetable Stock
1 tsp sugar
2 cups Heavy Cream
Salt and White Pepper
Directions for the Soup:
Rinse the shrimp and pat dry. Place in a bowl and toss with the BBQ Shrimp Seasoning. Place in the refrigerator or in an ice bath while you prep and bake the squash and aromatics.
On a rimmed baking sheet, place the squash, onion, celery, and garlic. Drizzle with Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil and sprinkle on the salt. Roast at 400 degrees until the squash is softened and the onions, celery and garlic are browned and caramelized--about 15-20 minutes.
Scrape the vegetables into a stockpot taking care to get all the browned bits. Add the stock, sugar and the seasoned shrimp. Bring to a low simmer. Cook until the shrimp are pink and opaque--about five minutes. Puree with a immersion blends or in batches in a conventional blender. Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer.
Taste and adjust with salt and white pepper.
Ingredients for the Spiced Creme Fraiche:
1 cup crème fraîche
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp grated Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp Berbere
Directions for the Spiced Creme Fraiche:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and place in the refrigerator. Allow the flavors to meld for at least 30 minutes. Place in a squeeze bottle or zip top bag. Cut the corner of the zip top bag to create a piping bag. Garnish the soup with a little squiggle on top.
For the Garlic Croutons we turned to the croutons we used in our Vegan Caesar Salad. Nutritional Yeast is a fascinating ingredient. It's one of those "what's that flavor...I can't put my finger on it" type of ingredient. We highly recommend you add it to your pantry. You'll turn to it again and again. We love it on potatoes, pasta and popcorn!
For the Cinnamon Spiced Candied Bacon we turned to this recipe. Make a little extra...there's something about this bacon. It tends to disappear from the pan!
