Noele's Shrimp and Lobster Bisque in a Bread Bowl

One of the nicest things about having Noele home for vacation is she sometimes cooks for us. Tonight she put together a Shrimp and Lobster Bisque. She served them in bread bowls, which hold a special place for Gail and me. I often find lobster bisque to be overly intense. Noele's addition of shrimp softened and blended the flavors perfectly. This combination brought full flavor without overdoing the heavy cream.

The thinner bisque melted the inside of the bread bowl, making each bite thicker than the next. Along with the bisque, Noele served a tossed salad with heirloom cherry tomatoes and a white bean pesto for dipping our extra bread. Noele can cook for us anytime.

Noele's Shrimp and Lobster Bisque

1½ T butter
1 T Olive oil
2 t Minced garlic
½ t Tarragon
½ t Thyme
½ t Rosemary
½ t Pepper
1 minced medium white onion
2 peeled and sliced carrots
2 sliced celery stocks
½ t salt
4 cu better than bullion lobster broth (5 t to 4 cu)
1 sliced tomato
2 T tomato paste
¼ cu heavy cream
1 lobster
10 medium shrimp

1. Combine butter, oil, garlic and spices in pan, lightly cooking to wake the flavors
2. Add onion, carrots, celery and salt, sauteing until tender
3. Add 4 cups lobster broth. Noele used Better Than Bullion, but used 5 t to 4 cu water rather than the recommended 4 t.
4. Add tomato and tomato paste and simmer for 1 hour.
5. Cook and pick the lobster, chopping it into small pieces
6. Saute, peel and de-vein the shrimp, chopping it into small pieces
7. Blend the mixture in a blender or food processor and return to the pan
8. Add heavy cream, lobster and shrimp and bring the bisque back to temperature