lobster | Cecile's Cuisine

For Christmas I was given a wonderful cookbook about Papillottes. The pictures were amazing and the recipes so tantalizing that I had a hard time putting it down….If I were not working, I know what I would do all day long;-) did you guess?!?! I would play in my kitchen and try all those tempting recipes. Well for now, I will try to try some of those recipes for dinner.

During my reading I kept seeing seafood recipes with various fruit salsa, including one with grapefruit. I would have never thought of using grapefruit to accompany my entree…. This is where I found my inspiration for today’s recipe.

Ingredients for 2: 2 small lobster tails, 1/2 grapefruit, 2 clementines, 1/4 pomegranate, 1 tbsp of sherry wine, 2 tbsp of honey, 1 green onion chopped thinly, 1 tbsp of mint chopped thinly, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and oil.

With kitchen scissors, cut through the lobster shell from the top down to the tail ( but cut through the bottom of the lobster not the top). Remove the meat from the shell, clean the shell by rinsing it under water. With a sharp knife, cut through the meat in its length and remove the veins. Rinse the meat. Place the meat in a bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place the meat back in its shell. Place the lobster on a silpat and cook in a warm oven at 425 for 8 minutes.

While the lobster is cooking, prepare the salsa. Peel the mandarins and the grapefruit. Then with a sharp knife, make a small indentation into each segment and peel off the fruit off the skin. Repeat this process for both mandarin and for half of the grapefruit. Place the fruit segments into a bowl. Open the pomegranate and remove the seeds from the fruit ( you will need about 1/4 of the fruit). Add the seeds to the grapefruit mixture. Add 1 tbsp of sherry, 2 tbsp of honey, the chopped mint, the chopped green onion. You may add 1/8 tsp of red pepper flakes to spice up the salsa but I don’t like spicy food. To serve your meal, place your lobster on your plate, spoon the salsa beside it. You may also add some oven roasted broccolini. Et voila!!!

Bon Appetit and Happy Cooking!!!

Yesterday evening as I was picking up my dinner (tuna) at the Fresh Market, I saw those yummy lobsters on sale. I will have to tell you that I have never cooked lobsters before but they looked so appetizing and they were so reasonably priced ( only $6 a piece) that I was willing to try. Well, after perusing through various cookbooks, I decided to just roast the lobsters.

Ingredients per person: 1 lobster per person, 1/2 tbsp of olive oil, 1/8 tsp of pepper, 1/4 tsp of sea salt, 1/4 tsp of lemon pepper.

Ingredients for the Lemon Beurre Blanc: 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice, 1 tbsp of white wine,
1 stick of butter at room temperature, 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/8 tsp of pepper.

With scissors or kitchen shears, cut down the center of the tail to the fan through the top of the lobster. With your hands, pull the shell open and remove gently the meat off the shell. Rinse the meat under water and rinse the shell also. Then remove any veins or shells of the meat and place the meat flat on a plate. In a small bowl, place all the ingredients above and stir well. Using a pastry brush, brush this mixture on both sides of the meat and place the meat back into its shell. Place the lobster on a silpat and bake in warm oven for 8 minutes at 425.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan place the lemon and the white wine and bring to boil. Cook until the liquid is reduced to half. Then remove the pan from the stove and slowly add the butter by whipping it in with a small whisk one tablespoon at a time. The sauce should thicken slowly and should not ” separate”. When the sauce is ready, set it aside until the lobsters are cooked.

To serve, place a lobster on the plate and drizzle the sauce over it, or not…

My lobster tasted great without the sauce, and was much more healthy for me. You may serve your lobster with grilled vegetables. I ate mine with grilled Fennel. Yum!!!

Bon Appetit and Happy Cooking!!!