Fast and Frugal: Creamy Lobster Soup for Two

Not a traditional bisque, but a fine lobster soup.

A few weeks ago I stumbled upon some affordable frozen lobster, enough for lobster rolls, which I did not photograph. Another time perhaps.

I wanted to use the shells in my compost, which has been depleted this summer with the planting of a small tree to replace the large, century-old maple we - sadly and with much procrastinating - were forced to remove three years ago.

But first, I made a delicious stock by boiling the shells in water, then extracting every morsel of lobster meat I could before placing the tasty broth, lobster bits and all, in the refrigerator. I then roasted the picked-over shells, which dried them out so I could either crush or grind them for my compost bin.*

The next day, I found myself with slightly less than two cups of broth, to which I added:

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste from a tube
• 1 small tomato, seeded and chopped
• 1 small potato, boiled and cubed
• 1/4 cup corn kernels (from a bag of frozen corn - most economical)
• 1 small carrot, finely chopped
• 1 small celery stalk, finely chopped
• healthy dash of Old Bay Seasoning
• teaspoon chopped parsley
• dash sea salt and freshly-ground pepper
• 1/4 cup heavy cream, room temperature

Place the stock in a medium-size sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a boil, adding tomato, carrot, celery. Bring to a second boil and lower heat, adding corn, potato and seasoning. Allow to simmer under low heat for about 20 minutes, adding room temperature cream before serving.

Taste frequently. I thought the soup had a bitter aftertaste, so I added a pinch of sugar, which seemed to enhance the flavor. I had no sherry in the house, but adding that to the soup is another option.

By strictest definition, I can't call this a bisque but it was a great Saturday night soup. Expect a repeat performance!

*Use the same two-step process before adding the shells of shrimp to your compost. And always buy wild-caught shrimp and lobster.