Lobster Thermidor

   Lobster Themidor is a dish fit for a king. It's one of those rich, creamy French Classics that is just pure, unabashed opulence. You take a delicious, fatty lobster and smother it in creamy custard. Then, if that's not enough for you, you top it off with a layer of melted Brie or Gruyere cheese. Oh, la decandance!

   Lobster Themidor was first made in Paris in 1894. It takes its name from a play about the French Revolution and the era in French history that followed, known affectionately as  "The Terror". I love the irony that such a luxurious dish was named in honour of one of history's greatest class struggles. Lucky for you, lobster is relatively cheap and plentiful during the summer, and you don't need a king's riches for the eggs, cream and brandy that round out this recipe.

   What you will need is a bit of time to spare. While lobster is significantly cheaper during the summer, they stuff don't exactly give it away, so its worth taking the time to make something really wow with it. This is a fun recipe to try at home, because its one of those dishes that could easily cost you 45 bucks a plate in a restaurant, but you can recreate it at home for much less.   

   Making Lobster Thermidor is certainly a bit trickier that just making straight up boiled lobster, but with a little bit of care you should have no problem making something truly memorable. The key to success here is to get the cooking of the lobster bang on. What you will need to do is cook the lobsters as little as possible when you first boil them. You then add the lobster meat to the custard at the last minute and very gently finish the cooking, until the meat is soft and melting.

Warning: When you sneak a bite of that delicious lobster - poached in custard and drowning in rich, creamy cheese - you might feel the need to look over your shoulder to make sure there aren't any Revolutionaries coming to overthrow you.

Prep time: 30 minutes. Cooking time: 25 minutes Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 whole lobsters (1.5 to 2 lbs each)

1 cup 35% cream

2 egg yolks

1/4 cup finely diced french shallot

1 clove garlic, finely diced

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

100g brie or camembert cheese 

2 oz brandy

2 tablespoons chives, finely chopped 

1 bunch swiss chard (optional)

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the lobsters for 8 minutes. Transfer the lobsters to a large bowl of ice water. Remove the meat from the shell. Wash the body and tail shell from 1 lobster and reserve in the fridge. The lobster meat should still be a little undercooked at this point. You will finish cooking the meat inside the custard.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a medium sized sauce pot and sautée the garlic and onions until they just start to turn translucent. Add the brandy simmer on medium-low until almost completely reduced. Careful as it might catch fire. Have a lid handy to put out the fire if it doesn't go out by itself after a minute. 

3. Gently heat 1 cup of 35% cream in a small saucepan and add a 1/4 cup of hot cream to the onions and garlic. Whisk in the eggs yolk, followed by the remaining hot cream. Continue whisking over low heat until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. 

4. Add the lobster meat and 2 tablespoons dijon mustard, then gently simmer on low heat until the lobster is fully cooked, about 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon chives. 

5. Spoon the lobster mix into the reserved lobster shell. I like to put all the meat from each lobster into just one half shell so that it looks extra heaping. Top each stuffed lobster with thin slices of brie cheese and then place under the broiler. Broil on high heat until the cheese is well browned.

6. Place the swiss chard in a large pot with 1 tablespoon butter and 2 tablespoons water. Cook on medium high until the leaves are wilted then season with salt & pepper. Strain the swish chard and then place a mound in the center on 2 plates. Place one lobster thermidor on each pile of swiss chard and then garnish with fresh chives.

Smoked Salmon Blinis

      This little canape is one of those go-to classics in my repertoire that I often rely on when I need a known crowd pleaser for a cocktail party. The weather has been bright and sunny lately, and this canape is perfect for the season because it is so light and fresh. 

         There are many different variations on the classic blini, which is basically just a savory pancake. Some recipes call for yeast, but here I just use baking soda as my leavening agent. Using yeast adds an interesting earthy flavour to the blinis, but using baking soda is just plain easier. 

   Many recipes that you will find for blinis call for potatoes, which you can easily work into this recipe. Simply boil the potatoes until a knife easily runs through them and then either mash them while they are hot for a smooth result or let them cool and then grate them for a more chunky texture. Either way, you don't need to alter the blini batter in this recipe. Just mix the potatoes into the batter and fry normally. Like in yeast leaven blinis, the potatoes add a nice earthy note, but I chose to leave them out of this recipe to keep things light. 

      Any good quality smoked salmon works fine for this recipe, but if you're feeling ambitious, I really recommend that you try my recipe for homemade smoked salmon. Spring is the perfect time to try out making your own smoked salmon, because it's important that the salmon stays cold while you smoke it. A cool spring or early summer evening is the perfect time to get those wood chips smoldering.  

Prep time: 15 minutes + 10 minutes rest time. Cook time: 10 minutes. Makes 24 canapes.

Ingredients:

350g smoked salmon
3 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup sour cream
2 cups flour
2 eggs
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon baking soda
2 pinches salt
3 tablespoons butter


1. To make the dill sour cream, mix together the sour cream, dill & lemon juice with a pinch of salt. Let rest in the fridge while you make the blinis, to allow the flavours to marry.

2. To make the blini batter: in a mixing bowl, stir the baking soda into the flour along with a pinch of salt. Make a well in the flour and add the two eggs. Use a fork to beat the eggs and then incorporate into the flour. Add the milk and stir all the ingredients together without overworking the batter. It is ok if it the batter is a bit lumpy - overworking the batter will make the blinis tough & chewy. Stir in 2 tablespoons fresh chives and set aside for 10 minutes in a cool place to allow the baking soda to activate.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a non-stick frying pan on medium-high heat. Spoon the batter into the pan - about 1 heaping tablespoon for each blinis. Cook until nicely browned on one side, about 3 minutes and then flip and brown the other side, about 2 minutes more. Fry the blinis in batches and keep in a warm place until you have made 24.

4. Top each blini with a small slice of smoked salmon, a dollop of dill sour cream and garnish with fresh chives. Serve at room temperature.

Crab Salad with Grilled Asparagus

         Spring is finally in full swing and great local Quebec products are showing up all over the markets. Crab is easily one of my favorite foods. That's why fresh snow crab, pulled straight from the Atlantic, is a pretty exciting sight to me. Local asparagus is just coming into season too here in Quebec, which is perfect timing, because asparagus just happens to be a perfect match for crab.  

       When you are dealing with ingredients as beautiful and fresh as these, you want to dress them up as little as possible. Just let their natural flavour shine. The only dressing I use for this salad is olive oil and lemon juice. The only seasoning is salt and pepper with a bit of fresh dill. Yet this dish still packs a flavour punch, all thanks the grilled asparagus and that amazing snow crab. A little sprinkling of grated hard boiled eggs adds a bit of buttery texture to the salad.


Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 15 minutes. Serves 4

Ingredients

4 snow crab sections (2 whole crabs)

2 bunches asparagus

2 eggs

5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 bunch fresh dill

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

1. To prepare the crab, cut a slit along the edge of each leg and use the knife to slide the meat out. Cut the body in half and use a fork to remove the meat there. Crack each claw's shell in half and then remove the bottom part and leave the meat in the shell. Toss the crab meat in 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and the juice of one lemon. Season with a bit of chopped dill, sea salt & freshly ground black pepper. Keep refrigerated.

2. Cook the eggs in salted water until they are hard boiled. Chill the eggs in ice water, peel and then separate the yolks from the whites. Use the fine side of a box grater or a Microplane to grate the eggs. 

Tip: To avoid having any nasty gray edges on the yolks that can come from overcooking the eggs, I never let the water get to a rolling boil. I keep the water around the temperature of hot coffee. The eggs take longer (about 12 - 15 minutes) but the texture of both the yolks and the white are softer and more buttery when cooked gently.    

3. Blanch the asparagus in boiling salted water for just under 1 minute. Toss in olive oil, salt & pepper and then grill on high heat until just browned.

4. Divide the asparagus among 4 plates, top with crab salad, crab claw & grated egg. Drizzle a bit of extra virgin olive oil over each plate.