Dungeness Crab Bisque

 Stolen from Billy Hahn, Executive chef from Jake's Restaurant 6/03

Serves 6

1 cup onions, chopped
cup celery, chopped
1 T chopped shallots
pound butter
  cup flour
t. sugar
2 oz. brandy or cream sherry
2 pounds whole crab bodies, uncleaned but cooked
extra crab shells if you have them
cup white wine
T. paprika
t. salt
1 T. tomato paste
t. white pepper
t. cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce (or more to taste)
cup cream
6 cups water
6 oz crab meat, left in chunks    (can be made with shrimp, lobster or crayfish too)

Saut onions, celery and shallots in butter until tender. Add whole crab
and shells and simmer 15 minutes. Add flour and sugar to make a roux,
simmer 10 minutes. Add brandy or sherry and cook for 5 minutes. Add wine,
tomato paste, paprika, salt, pepper, Tabasco, cream and water. Simmer for
15 minutes and remove from heat. Press through fine strainer, put back in
pot and heat. Top with crabmeat chunks.

You can go through the solids from the strainer and pick out crabmeat if
you like.