Cooking With Rania: Roasted Red Pepper Bisque With Basil Cream

This week, Rania Harris stops by the Pittsburgh Today Live kitchen with a tasty recipe for Roasted Red Pepper Bisque with Basil Cream!

Roasted Red Pepper Bisque with Basil Cream

Basil Cream
:

• ¾ cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 2 tablespoons fresh minced fresh basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• Se salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Bisque:

• 8 red bell peppers, roasted, skins removed, and chopped
 (see note)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3-4 cups low sodium chicken broth (more if needed to thin out the bisque)
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ cup half and half
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

For the Basil Cream:


1. Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until serving.

For the Bisque:


1. Cook the oil and garlic together in a large soup pot over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the garlic is softened and cooked ~ be careful not to burn the garlic. Stir in the onion, increase the heat to medium and cook until the onion is translucent and begins to turn golden, 5-7 minutes.
2. Stir in the cumin and smoked paprika, cooking until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and flour, cook for 1 minute. Then, gradually whisk in 3 cups of broth, careful to smooth any lumps. Stir in the bay leaves, chopped roasted peppers.
3. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and cook until the peppers are very tender, about 7 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Puree the soup in a blender, about 1/3 of the amount at a time, until smooth. Return the soup to the pot.
   Stir in the half and half, sherry, and additional broth if needed. Heat the soup over medium-low heat until hot. Stir in the basil and season with salt and pepper. Serve each portion drizzled with the basil cream.

Serves: 8

To Roast Red Peppers:

1. Preheat the broiler.
2. Put the peppers on a broiler pan and broil them until they are black on all sides. Remove them from the broiler, put them in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let them sit for at least 15 minutes, then remove the plastic wrap and let them cool. Using your fingers scrape off all the black char from the outside of the peppers; use a paper towel if needed to assist with this or skin them under cold running water. Remove the stem and seeds and coarsely dice the peppers. Proceed with the recipe as directed.