Summer Melon Soup with Crab

I've been buying lots of cantaloupe at the farmers market lately. And while I love it simply (chilled and sprinkled with salt) and have also been throwing it into my breakfast smoothies, I needed a new idea. Here comes Food & Wine magazine to save the day. A deliciously simple melon soup with a fresh and flavorful crab salad to round it out. This was so yummy and elegant that I am going to serve it at a soon-to-happen wine pairing dinner with my family. The wine match? A tropical, yet minerally, Sauvignon Blanc. Maybe Spy Valley from New Zealand. Or the Robert Mondavi Fume' Blanc.

Summer Melon Soup with Crab
From Food & Wine magazine.
Serves four.

1 medium shallot, minced
2 tablespoons snipped chives
3 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons sugar
4 cups cubed cantaloupe

In a medium bowl, stir the shallot and chives into 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Whisk in the olive oil and fold in the crab. Season with salt and white pepper.

In a small saucepan, boil the water with the sugar. Transfer to a blender and let cool. Add the melon and the remaining lemon juice, season lightly with salt and puree.

Mound the crab in the center of 4 shallow bowls. Pour the soup around the crab and serve right away.

(Hint: You can make the melon soup ahead of time and chill overnight.)