Lobster Bisque

Hey, you guys! Guess what day is coming up?

Valentine’s Day!

And guess what the most horrible day to go out and eat in a restaurant in the whole calendar year is?

Valentine’s Day!

Oh, you were going to treat your special someone to a special evening out? There are lots of reasons to opt out of dinner on the town.

It might be impossible to get a reservation at the place you want in the first place, but even if you do, a lot can go wrong. Your servers will be busy and stressed and might even be salty that they’re there serving you instead of with their significant other. You might get stuck with a prix fixe menu that looks good on the surface but could just be a creative chef’s way of cleaning out the freezer. You might be having a great time but then have someone else come along with their drama.

No, thank you.

When Scott and I do decide to go out for a special occasion, we avoid special occasions that will have the restaurant staff stressed and cooking outside their comfort zone.

But what if you still want to have a special meal with your significant other?

The good news is…you can make a lot of restaurant quality food at home, and it’s pretty easy to do. All you need are some quality ingredients, some good wine, a good recipe, and a solid Spotify station.

I can help you with the first and third.

That’s the ingredients and recipe, in case you weren’t counting!

My dad is always on the lookout for great regional ingredients, and he recently became a big fan of Goldbelly.com. Their mission? Find America’s most loved regional foods make them available to anyone.

If you’re missing local sausage, seafood, bakery goods, or even favorite restaurants, they can find them. Left New York and missing cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery? You can order a dozen. I love it!

Which means Dad can send the perfect gift to us in the form of two pounds of fresh lobster meat, already cooked and cleaned, straight from Maine.

It’s not cheap, but when you consider the price of a babysitter, parking, and a restaurant, it’s well worth it to splurge on restaurant quality ingredients.

And now we just need a recipe.

There are lots of amazing things you can make with lobster. But if you want something easy to make that looks and tastes elegant enough to come from your favorite posh restaurant, try out this Lobster Bisque.

A bisque is just a rich and creamy soup, originally from France, and typically based on crustaceans. It uses their shells for the stock and the meat in the end product.

Unlike a chunky seafood chowder, it’s creamy and smooth, elegant and delicious.

Try this one on for size and see what you think!

Lobster Bisque

Serves 4

What You’ll Need:

1 lb lobster meat, cooked and chopped {2 full lobsters}
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp butter
1 carrot, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small tomato, chopped
1 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups lobster stock {or broth of choice}
1 1/2 cups white wine
1 cup heavy cream
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
2 tsp fresh chopped parsley

Accompany With:

Fresh sourdough bread or other hearty, crusty bread
White wine

How to Make It:

1. If you don’t have already cooked lobster meat, steam your lobsters – here’s a good tutorial covering all things lobster.

Note: I refuse to boil live lobsters. If I have the opportunity to humanely put my food out of its misery before cooking it, I will. Most of the time, I will order lobster meat pre-cooked or just buy the tails. If I don’t have a choice, they get frozen and then a nailgun or knife to the head before they go in. Here’s a tutorial on how to kill a lobster in the most humane way possible. One reason I’m happy about Goldbelly.com.

2. While ideally you want lobster stock for this, you can use a clam broth or even vegetable or chicken. I find it doesn’t alter the taste all that much. If you absolutely want lobster, here’s a great recipe for lobster stock.

2. In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic to make a mirepoix and saute for 5 minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Add the thyme and cayenne pepper and stir until mixed. Add the tomato and let cook an additional 5 minutes.

3. Add the clam broth and white wine and heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes.

4. While this is going on, prep the cooked lobster. Twist off the claws and tails. Using the side of a kitchen knife, crack the knuckles and claws to get the meat out. Cut the tail lengthwise with a sharp kitchen knife and remove the tail meat. Slice the meat in half lengthwise to remove the black vein. Roughly chop the lobster meat, reserving the claws for garnish.

5. Add the lobster meat, claws reserved, to the broth and mirepoix mix and cook an additional 5 minutes, or until the lobster is heated through.

6. Using an immersion blender or your blender, blend the bisque by batches until it is creamy and smooth. Serve garnished with lobster claw and the chopped parsley.