Adapted from
The French Laundry Cookbook
by Thomas Keller (Artisan, 1999)
1 pound unsalted butter at room temperature, in pieces
Salt and pepper
1-1/2 cups thinly sliced leek rounds
1/4 medium-size ripe tomato, peeled, flesh cut in small diamond shapes
2 teaspoons minced chives
1 teaspoon each finely diced carrot, turnip and dark green of leeks
Red-beet essence [recipe follows]
Par-cooked meat from 3 lobsters at room temperature [recipe follows]
Pommes Maxim [recipe follows].
Place 2 tablespoons water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to very low, and whisk in butter piece by piece. Continue adding until all butter is emulsified. Set aside, and keep warm (the best way is in a thermos); do not allow to boil.
Bring a 3-quart pot of water seasoned with 1 tablespoon salt to a boil. Have a large bowl of ice water ready. Add leeks to boiling water, cook 5 minutes until just tender, drain in a sieve and place sieve with leeks in ice water until leeks are cool. Drain, and transfer to a small sauté pan. Place over low heat to reheat. Add tomato, chives, diced carrot, turnip and leek greens. Stir in 1/3 cup emulsified butter. Season with salt and pepper, and cover to keep warm.
Place beet essence in a small saucepan. Whisk in 3 tablespoons emulsified butter, and cover to keep warm.
Heat oven to 300 degrees [F]. Place lobster pieces in single layer in a large saucepan or sauté pan. Add remaining emulsified butter. Lobster meat should be just about covered. Place pan over low heat, and cook 5 to 6 minutes, until meat is just heated through. Remove knuckle pieces, drain and fold into leek mixture.
While lobster cooks, place potatoes in oven 2 to 3 minutes to reheat.
To serve, place a spoonful of warm beet essence in center of each of 6 plates. Briefly reheat leek mixture, and spoon onto beet essence. Remove lobster tails and claws from butter mixture, draining well; place a tail piece and a claw on each plate, on top of leeks. Break potatoes in six pieces and place on top of the lobster. Serve.
Yield: 6 servings.
Red Beet Essence
1 pound red beets, peeled and juiced, or 1 cup juice from health-food store
1/2 teaspoon red-wine vinegar
A few drops lemon juice.
Place beet juice in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Slowly reduce to no more than 1/4 cup; it should be thickened to a glaze. Add vinegar and lemon juice, and set aside.
Par Cooked Lobsters
3 1-1/2 to 2-pound live lobsters
White vinegar
Place lobsters in a container with tight-fitting lid. Cover with cold water, remove lobsters and measure water. Pour water into another large pot, and add 1 tablespoon vinegar for every quart of water. Boil.
Return lobsters to lidded container. Pour the hot water over them, cover and steep 2 minutes for 1 1/2-pound lobsters, 3 minutes for 2-pound lobsters. Remove lobsters. Reserve water in container.
Pull off lobster claws and knuckles, and return to hot water for 5 minutes. Twist off tails, and discard bodies.
Snip through bottom sides of tail shells with shears. Remove meat. Discard shells. Cut tail meat in half lengthwise. Remove vein running through top of meat. Place meat on a platter lined with paper towel, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Remove claws from hot water. Twist off knuckles, and reserve. Hold claw, pull down on small pincer and pull it off. Use heavy shears to snip shell at knuckle end enough to open it; remove meat in one piece. Add to platter with tail meat.
Use shears to snip through the knuckle shell, pry open and remove meat. Add to the platter.
Pommes Maxim
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large Yukon Gold potato, about 9 ounces, peeled and sliced paper thin
Kosher salt.
Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place butter in a saucepan over low heat. Skim foam from surface, and discard. Slowly pour off clear golden melted butter into a bowl, discarding milky residue.
Toss potatoes in bowl with clarified butter. Arrange slices, overlapping, on a nonstick baking sheet, and sprinkle with salt. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, until crisp and golden. Set aside at room temperature.