Growing up on the East Coast ensured you of a few things in life. Knowing good pizza and where to get a proper slice that dose not bend when you fold it. Believing that a bacon-egg-and-cheese (one word) is basically the holy grail of breakfast food. And of course, fresh Atlantic seafood, most notably shell fish. I will pledge that when it comes to shrimp, the Gulf Coast has that going on, but lobster, that has to come from the cold waters of the North East. I can recall so many lobster rolls in my day and I am split camp, Connecticut (warm with butter) or Maine style (cold with mayo and lemon). I would take either any day of the week preferably on a hot summer day.
This dish, came about many, summer ago, in fact, I was roughly 12 or 13 when I conceptualized the recipe. Its a pasta salad, but really a take on your classic, Maine style lobster roll. To assemble, I prefer farfalle in this dish, which are the bow tie shaped pasta, cooked and cooled, then add fresh lobster meat, mayonnaise, a little spice, some chive and diced cucumber for the crunch. Of course, cucumber does not go into any lobster roll I have ever heard of, but I promise it works in this dish and adds a lovely brightness along with the lemon. I have made this countless times for so many occasions and I am always surprised that one lobster can be stretched so far. I hope you love it just as much as I do...
Lobster Farfalle
Ingredients:
1 ½ -2 lb live lobster
1 lb uncooked Farfalle pasta
1 English cucumber, diced
¼ cup chive or scallions, minced
1 cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 tsp sweet paprika
Salt & pepper to taste
Zest of one large lemon
½ cup fresh parsley, stemmed and chopped (optional)
Lemon wedges to serve (optional)
Directions:
Bring a large stock pot 3/4 full of salted water to a roaring boil. Drop lobster into water and cook until bright red and cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes, depending on size. Remove lobster from pot, crack shell and set aside to cool.
Cook Farfalle pasta in a separate pot of salted water, until al dente. Strain and set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, add mayonnaise, garlic, chive, paprika a pinch of salt and pepper and blend.
Remove lobster meat from shell and cut in bite-size pieces. Combine lobster meat, diced cucumber and cooled pasta to bowl with dressing, tossing together until well mixed. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Garnishing with lemon zest and chopped parsley. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. When serving include lemon wedges on the side.
~Serves eight to ten.
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