Tilapia, Ancho Chile and Roasted Maize Soup

A nice mild southwestern style tilapia soup!

    
     Dried chile ancho is a very mild and flavorful pepper.  The flavor of ancho is like rich raisons and mild dried chile pepper.  Tilapia is a farm raised white fish that is in the snapper family of fish.  The tilapia is seared to create more flavor.  Roasted maize kernels add a classic southwestern touch to this soup.  The few drops of lime juice on the garnish of bread slices adds a refreshing crisp flavor.  
    
     Tilapia, Ancho Chile and Roasted Maize Soup Recipe: 
     This recipe makes 1 large serving of soup!
     Simmer 1 medium size ancho chile pepper in 1 cup of water over very low heat, till the dried chile pepper is reconstituted.
     Remove the soft ancho chile from the broth.  (Save the ancho chile broth for later in the recipe!)
     Remove the stem and seeds from the ancho chile.
     Small dice the ancho chile and set it aside.
     Heat a sauce pot over medium heat.
     Add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil.
     Add 1 tablespoon each of:
     - small diced carrot
     - small diced celery
     - small diced onion
     Add 1 minced garlic clove.
     When the onions turn clear in color, add 1 1/2 cups of shrimp broth.
     Add the reserved diced ancho chile and its broth.
     Add sea salt and black pepper.
     Add 1 pinch of cumin. 
     Gently boil the soup, till the vegetables become tender.
     Shuck 1 ear of heirloom maize.  (Try not to select a GMO sweet corn variety!  Heirloom Native American maize varieties are a much better choice, because they are not bred to be sweet!)
     Cut the ear of corn in half.
     Roast half of the ear of corn under a broiler or over an open flame, till the tips of the corn kernels become caramelized to a light brown color.
     Cut the roasted corn kernels from the cob and add them to the soup.
     Make a light blonde roux with 4 pats of unsalted butter and an equal amount of flour in a sauce pot, while constantly stirring, over medium heat.  When the roux emits a light hazelnut aroma, then it is ready.
     Add a little bit of the roux at a time to the hot soup broth while stirring, till the soup becomes thin sauce consistency.  (Save any extra roux for another recipe!)
     Add 1/4 of cream, while stirring.
     Add 1/4 cup of milk.
     Stir the soup occasionally, till it comes to a gentle boil.
     Reduce the temperature to low heat.
     Heat a saute pan over medium heat.

     Add 1 tablespoon of blended olive oil.

     Add a 3 to 4 ounce tilapia filet

     Season the tilapia filet with sea salt and black pepper.

     Sear the tilapia filet, till it becomes lightly browned on both sides. 

     Remove the tilapia from the hot pan.

     Chop the tilapia filet into small pieces and add them to the soup.

     Simmer the soup and stir it occasionally, till the soup reduces to a medium thin consistency.
     Ladle the soup into a soup bowl.
    
     Tilapia, Ancho Chile and Roasted Maize Soup Garnish: 
     Sprinkle a little bit of thin sliced scallion over the soup.
     Float three small half moon shaped baguette slices on the center of the soup.
     Squeeze a few drops of lime juice on the bread slices.
     Garnish the floating bread with a thin lime slice curl.

       
     This southwestern fish soup is nice for a summer evening or for a chilly day.  The very mild savory chile ancho has a soothing warming effect.  Yum!  ...  Shawna