Lobster Corn Chowder

I made this for myself (and Jamie) for my birthday dinner - such a treat! It has such a great corn flavor, and the lobster makes it decadent and perfect for a special occasion. I went off a mix of two recipes - this from Ina and this from Martha - and tweaked them a bit. The result is a deliciously corntastic chowder. Ina uses heavy cream, so I lightened it up with a mix of corn stock, whole milk, and half and half. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 1.5 lb lobster 

2 tbsp butter

1 large yellow onion, diced and divided in two

4 cups corn stock

1 cup whole milk

1 cup half and half

4 strips bacon, chopped

4 cups corn (fresh or frozen)

1 russet or Idaho potato, peeled and cut into 1/4"-1/2" dice

2 stocks celery, diced

2 tbsp chives, minced, plus more to serve

pinch of cayenne

1/8 tsp smoked paprika

Directions:

Cook the lobster

Bring 8 cups water to a boil. Add lobsters and cook 15 minutes. Set them over a colander set in a large bowl. Take the meat out of the lobster over the bowl, reserving the juices and discarding any roe or tamale. Keep the shells. Cut the meat into bite-sized pieces and put in a bowl. Refrigerate until you need them. 

Grilled Lobster

This is such a great way to do lobster. The cutting them down the middle while they're alive is a little awful/creepy/terrifying. I had Jamie do it, but I think you can ask a fishmonger to do it for you, too. The combination of the herb butter and the smoke of the grill gives the meat an excellent flavor and seems to concentrate the flavor, too. Definitely want to make this again!

Lobster Rolls

My favorite place to buy seafood is Cor-J seafood in Hampton Bays. It's the best. I walk in there and I want to buy everything. Last Saturday, we stopped there on the way out to Southampton to pick up supplies for a seafood feast. We got clams, oysters, squid, and lobster and I decided to make lobster rolls. I had googled looking for the recipe from Mary's Fish Camp and found someone saying that they never taste lobstery enough at home, so I decided to make lobster mayonnaise to up the lobster quotient. (Feel free to be a normal person here and just use Hellmann's.) They were great! So chunky and delicious.

Serves 2-3
Ingredients:
2 1.5 lb lobsters
2 sticks of celery, finely diced
2 scallions, only the green parts, finely sliced
2-3 Potato Roll Hot Dog Buns
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp butter

For Lobster Mayo:
Shells of two lobsters
1 egg, room temperature ideally
3/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
salt

Lobster Corn Fritters

...or the Best Hors d'Oeuvres Ever. Yum! These are amazing. I made them for Jamie to start out a special dinner. They taste like summer. The lobster is rich, the corn is sweet, and the spicy mayo is the perfect accompaniment. They're definitely a treat and a little pricey, but tooootally worth it! Ina is just the best. (These are from her new cookbook, Foolproof, a wonderful Christmas present from my mother-in-law - thanks, Cindy!)

I halved the recipe because there were just two of us, but I will definitely be making it again another time in full force. This recipe makes 12-14 fritters and served 4-6.

Ingredients:
6-8 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 scallions, thinly sliced
1 1/4 cups fresh corn (I used frozen)
12 oz freshly cooked lobster meat, 1/4-inch diced
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp paprika
3/4 tbsp Old Bay
Kosher salt
2 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup half and half

Chili Lobster

As you may know, I love Fatty Crab, and their chili crab is one of the signature dishes. When Jamie sent me this recipe from the New York Times last week, I was happy to make it. Though it's totally a labor of love and you need to set aside about 4 hours for the whole process, it's really delicious and special. We had it for a little Father's Day dinner with my parents. You'd think the chili sauce might overpower the lobster, but the super lobstery broth prevents it. The whole dish is totally lobstery and the chili sauce has just the right amount of heat, and so much flavor. If you need to serve a lobster-lover something special, this is it.

Serves 4

Valentine's Day Dinner!

Jamie sent me two bouquets of roses! One the day before Valentine's Day to psych me out, and then an even prettier one on actual Valentine's Day. Isn't he the best?? We have a Valentine's Day tradition of staying in and having some sort of special dinner, then going out to Long Island the weekend after and having a long, relaxing weekend, just the two of us. I wanted to make him something special and toyed with a few ideas and decided on salmon roe caviar and creme fraiche as an hors d'oeuvre, lobster pot pie and salad, and pink cupcakes. (It was going to be a pink heart shaped cake, but they heart shaped cakes fell apart, so I just used the cupcakes!) All of this was complemented by a bottle of our favorite bubbly, Graham Beck. (We were introduced to it by Luvo Ntezo, the amazing sommelier at One&Only Cape Town in South Africa - it's fab. Made in the Champagne style, so very yeasty and dry, not sweet. And about $15 per bottle. Love!!)

I was able to whip this up on a weeknight, but it was a bit crazy, so I'd recommend saving it for a special weekend night home-date, or intimate dinner party.

Lobster Pot Pie
This was really decadent, but great and choc full of lobster. I used Ina's recipe, but used puff pastry instead, and didn't do the bottom layer. Also, I didn't use any Pernod because I didn't have any.

Mary's Fish Camp

I'd heard Mary's Fish Camp had the best lobster roll in the city, and now I think I can confirm it. I was never a huge lobster person - I would eat it, but never go out of my way. That has changed this summer and I've become a lobster fiend. This lobster roll looked a little mayonnaise-heavy so I was suspicious, but it was light and tasty and full of big chunks of lobster meat. The potato roll was buttery and soft and such a good accompaniment to the lobster. I highly recommend it. Also, we tried the fish tacos. They were pretty tasty, but the lobster roll was the star for sure.

Indoor Clambake

I've been dying to try this all summer. The Lobster Place and Clamman both have pre-packaged, all ready versions, but I was tempted by the chorizo, onions, and garlic in Martha Stewart's recipe. It was a great, fun, and surprisingly easy meal. Good for a special occasion, or, in my case, just having girls over for dinner. The dipping sauce is delicious and much healthier than just a bowl of melted butter. So summery and festive!

The mussels were tender and delicious and the lobster was cooked perfectly. The little knuckles just melt in your mouth. The timing on this recipe is what makes everything cook perfectly. When cracking into the lobster claws, prepare to get a little messy. The corn tastes great dipped in the sauce and sprinkled with salt.

(for 4 people)
Ingredients:
1 onion, quartered
3 garlic cloves
1/2 bottle of pale ale beer (I used Brooklyn Summer)
1/2 cup water
3/4 lb new potatoes