Recipe(tried): Lobster or Shrimp Soup Puerto Rican Style

Lobster or Shrimp Soup
(Serves 4)

3 lb. of lobster meat or shrimps, peeled & deveined
3 teaspoon annato seed oil (or 1-2 envelopes Saz n con Culantro y Achiote)
1 cup of onion (chopped)
3/4 cup green bell pepper (chopped)
2 garlic cloves (chopped)
1/2 cup of celery (chopped)
1/2 cup of carrot (sliced thin)
1 cup of calabaza (peeled & cubed)
1 cup of wine (white dry)
4 tomatoes (medium - peeled, seeded, and chopped)
1 1/4 uncooked white rice (put in water to cover for 20 minutes before using it for the soup)
3 cups of stock (lobster, fish or chicken) made from lobster shell
1/4 cup of small pimiento stuffed olives (sliced)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of ground dry oregano
1 tablespoon of capers (I use the cocktail capers, drained)
2 teaspoon of paprika (or to taste)
2 teapoon cumin
1 pinch saffron
2 bay leaves
3 leaves of culantro
salt to taste
3 sprigs green scallion slices (I use cilantrillo)

If you have Sofrito just add it to the kettle bring to heat and add the celery, carrots, tomatoes, calabaza, wine, stock, etc. To start from scratch you add the annato seed oil to the soup kettle, bring to heat, saute' onion and green bell pepper until soft, thenadd the garlic, celery, carrots, calabaza, tomatoes, white wine, fish or lobster stock, add the 2 cups of rice.Also add the bay leaves, paprika, caper, olives, cumin salt pepper pinch of saffron, cilantro, oregano add the lobster meat. Cover let to simmer, cook about 35 minutes. Serve in deep bowls sprinkled with scallions and cilantro for garnish.

Recipe sent by: Cristino Alicea from Florida.