What constitutes a bisque to you?

SatNavSaysStraightOn

SatNavSaysStraightOn

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I've just made up our evening meal. It's the first time I've made this recipe, leek and mushroom bisque. I've made a mushroom bisque many many times in the past and thought I had worked out what a bisque was, but this recipe is totally different.

My mushroom bisque (well the veganised version of it) is mushrooms, onions, thyme ,dill tips, cayenne pepper, paprika (sweet), pureed cashew nuts and lemon juice. It all gets liquidised at the end to made a smooth but very flavourful soup . The leek and mushroom bisque is completely different. It is leeks ,mushrooms , tomato pureé, farina, mixed herbs and mixed spices. You cook the whites of the leeks, add the tomato pureé, herbs and spices, water and then the farina to thicken it. The greens of the leeks go in with the mushrooms, but get taken out (not sure that will happen) at the end . It states very clearly that the soup must stand for a minimum of an hour before being reheated to be eaten without being liquidised.

So utterly different ythat on left wondering how what exactly is a bisque?
 
But if I understand things correctly, a bisque should be pureed and whilst the mushroom bisque recipe is, the leek and mushroom bisque isn't . Also my understanding was that it would normally be highly seasoned (spices wise ), the leek and mushroom bisque most certainly isn't . Hence my confusion .
 
Funny, I was just asking that question myself. Last weekend I got a batch of Louisiana crawfish, and debated turning some of them into a bisque. I didn't - lack of time, actually. I figure it is a shellfish base, usually with some cream, but not entirely necessary. The base should be smooth via a food processor of some sort. Chunks of the seafood in question can be added after, or sit on top, and perhaps seasoned with some onion or chives or parsley. A little spice heat might work (Old Bay)? I'd use a shellfish stock given the op.

Seeing other posts: yes, tomato can be made into a bisque, too. But I tend to think about shellfish...
 
There's a recipe for crawfish bisque with stuffed heads in our of Cajun/Creole books. We've never tried it, but I've always thought it looked interesting.
 
Merriam-Webster dictionary says:
  • a thick cream soup made with shellfish or game
  • a cream soup of pureed vegetables
If you think about it, as long as you use a stock and the soup is creamy, it's basically a bisque. I've always thought of a bisque as a creamy soup, and this confirms it. @SatNavSaysStraightOn: I certainly understand why you wouldn't use a meat or seafood stock, but it seems that there's enough room in the definition to mean it still qualifies.
 
Here is Larousse on the subject:

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My much thumbed copy:

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