At last week’s fantastic Clipper City beer dinner at the Royal Mile Pub, Chef Ian asked me why I didn’t include his recipe for Butter-Poached Lobster with Lobster Mashed Potatoes in the cookbook. I explained that the recipe was a bit long and involved for the average home cook. Yet at the dinner, so many people clamored for the recipe that I promised to post it to the blog, so here it is:

Butter Poached Lobster Tail with Lobster Mash and Vanilla Beurre Blanc

Thank you to Chef Ian of the Royal Mile Pub, Wheaton, MD, and the entire Morrison family, for your hospitality!

Yield: 4 servings

For the Vanilla Beurre Blanc:
1 whole Vanilla Bean
1/2 cup white wine
1 large shallot, peeled and diced
1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
1/2 Pound Unsalted Butter Chopped

Method

Halve Vanilla bean and remove and reserve seeds.
Combine Vanilla bean pod, diced shallot and white wine in sauce pan. Reduce
wine mixture till syrupy, add heavy cream, reduce till thick again. Over a
very low flame whisk in butter bit by bit melting it, but not breaking the
butter so the sauce looks greasy. Do not boil the sauce at this point.
When all butter is emulsified strain out shallots. Then add reserved
vanilla seeds and season to taste with salt and white pepper. Hold in warm
120 degree environment (back of range with the burner off while you are
cooking on the front burners).

Lobster Mash

4 ea Whole Live Lobsters (1 1/4 pounds each)
2 Pounds of Yukon Gold Potatoes
1 Quart Heavy Cream
4 ounces unsalted butter
Salt and Pepper

Method

Kill the lobsters by sticking a chef knife through their heads from the top
down right behind their eyes. They are dead immediately but they will have
nervous reactions for a few minutes. Take the tails off and reserve. Take
the claws off and reserve. Simmer the lobster bodies in the cream for 20
minutes. Peel and boil Yukon gold potatoes in a large saucepan 15 minutes.
When the potatoes are about four minutes from being done (almost tender, but not
quite) add in the lobster claws and simmer. Drain the potatoes, remove the
lobster claws. Return the potatoes to the pot. When the lobster claws are
cool enough to handle crack and remove the meat. Discard the shells and
reserve the meat. Mash the potatoes in the pot with the butter some salt
and white pepper. Strain the lobster cream. Add the strained cream to the
potatoes little by little adding as much as you can without making the
potatoes soupy. Mash as little as possible to incorporate. Finally fold in
reserved claw meat and hold warm. Do a final taste test for salt and
pepper.

Butter Poaching Lobster Tails

4 reserved Lobster Tails
Salt and Pepper
2 Pounds of Butter heated to 175 degrees

Melt butter in a saucepan just large enough to hold lobster tails and
butter. Salt and pepper lobster tails. Once butter has reached 175 degrees
drop in lobster tails. The lobsters should be submerged and maintained at a
heat at 165 degrees for approximately 15 minutes (If you undercook them the
tails will be tough, If you over cook them the tails will fall apart).
Remove with a slotted spoon.

Plating the Lobsters

Place a two ounce ladle of vanilla beurre blanc on the plate, mound one
fourth of lobster mash next two beurre blanc, place poached tail half on mash
half on beurre blanc. Accompany with fresh asparagus – and at last week’s dinner,
presented with a glass of the zesty Clipper City Small Craft Warning Uber Pils.