Bookbinder Red Snapper Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

SOUP BASE
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
12 white peppercorns or 12 black peppercorns, crushed
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped cilantro
8 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
salt
RED SNAPPER
2 small onions, chopped fine
3 celery ribs, chopped fine
1 -2 red snapper fillet (10 oz.)
1/4 cup sherry wine (optional)

Preparation

To make soup base, heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat; add carrots, celery, garlic, onion, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper; cook, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes.
Stir in peppercorns, bay leaf, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary, and cilantro; cook 2 minutes and add 7 cups of the vegetable broth; heat to boil.
Melt butter in a small saucepan; add flour and cornstarch, cook, stirring constantly, 4 to 5 minutes.
Slowly whisk in remaining 1 cup broth until mixture is smooth; add mixture to soup base; cover and simmer over medium-low heat 20 minutes.
Taste and adjust seasonings.
Strain through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth; discard solids and return broth to pot.
To make snapper, heat water to boil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat; add onions and celery; blanch until soft, about 3 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon and add to broth.
Boil fish in the same water until cooked through.
Remove fish from water; flake very finely with a fork.
Stir snapper and sherry, if desired, into soup base; heat through.