One Fish, Two Fish, Three Fish, Garlic Soup

Creamy Garlic Seafood Soup A tasty cousin of clam chowder that isn't a heart attack

Ingredients:

8 ounces medium shrimp, shells and tails intact

Cooking spray

2 cups chopped onion

12 garlic cloves

2 jalapeno peppers, halved

1/4 cup dry white wine

6 cups water

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon salt, divided

1/8 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed

1 pound halibut fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces

3 tablespoons small cilantro leaves

1 avocado, peeled, seeded and chopped

6 lime wedges

Directions:

-Peel and devain shrimp, reserving the shells.

-Heat a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add shrimp shells, onion, garlic and peppers; saute 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add wine to pan; cook 3 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates, stirring occasionally. Add 6 cups water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 40 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 3 cups; strain over a bowl.

-Melt butter in pan over medium-high heat. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add 1 cup shrimp broth, stirring constantly with a whisk. Stir in remaining 2 cups broth, cream, 1/2 teaspoon salt and saffron; bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle shrimp and fish evenly with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt; add to pan. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes or until shrimp are pink and fish flakes easily. Remove from heat. Ladle about 2/3 cup soup into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons cilantro and 1 1/2 tablespoons avocado. Serve with lime wedges.

Nutrition info: 305 calories per serving.

Cheers! Try eating this meal paired with the same white wine you put in the soup. They will complement each other well, and a dry white is perfect with fish.

Origin: Umm, what else? Cooking Light.

Notes: Tailor this to how you like it. If you enjoy spice, put in more jalapeno and garlic. We generally leave out the saffron (it's expensive and taste is hit-or-miss) as well as the cilantro. You can use any flaky fish you like - the recipe originally called for black snapper, but halibut and tilapia work well.