INGREDIENTS:
(4 servings)
For the Maine Lobster
4 each 1 ½ pound live Maine lobsters
For the Spaghetti
1 butternut squash (2 lb. squash will yield 1 lb. of usable
flesh)
¾ teaspoon salt, divided
1-1/2 cups semolina flour
2 Tablespoons olive oil
For the Vanilla-Butternut Beurre
Blanc
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small Spanish onion
½ cup white wine
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 small bay leaf
½ cup heavy cream
½ vanilla bean (or ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract)
For the Presentation
3 each carrots, medium sized
1 teaspoon olive oil
To taste salt and white pepper
1 small bunch fresh chives
DIRECTIONS:
In a large 9-quart stockpot with lid, boil 2” of
water. At the boil, add the Maine Lobsters and replace the lid.
Cook covered for 12 minutes. Remove from the pot and place on a pan to
cool. Reserve the cooking liquid. When the Maine Lobsters are cool
enough to handle, remove the meat from the tail (discarding the vein), knuckles
and claws. Cut off the tail fin to use as a garnish. Place the meat
and the tail fins on an ovenproof pan or plate with sides just large enough to
hold the meat in a single layer. Add 2 ounces of the reserved cooking
liquid to the pan with the meat and cover with foil. Reserve.
For the Spaghetti
Peel, halve and discard the seeds
from the butternut squash. Cut into one inch pieces, cover with cool
water in a small saucepan and add ¼ teaspoon salt. Cover the pan and cook
over medium heat for approximately 20 minutes or until the squash is
tender. Strain off the liquid, allowing the squash to become rather dry
and place the squash in a food processor or blender to puree. Cool
slightly and measure out ½ cup of the puree. Reserve the remaining puree
for the sauce. Place flour on a clean work surface and make a well in the
center. Add ½ teaspoon salt, olive oil and the butternut squash
puree. Mixing with your hands, gradually bring flour into the center of
the well, producing a soft smooth dough. Add warm water if necessary to
make a smooth workable dough. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes.
Allow the dough to rest for one hour. Roll the dough into a thin sheet
using a pasta machine and run it through the spaghetti cutter. Reserve
the pasta until service.
For the Vanilla-Butternut Beurre
Blanc
Dice the butter and bring to room temperature. Heat
the oil in a small saucepan. Chop the onions finely. Sauté the
onions for two minutes, but do not allow them to brown. Deglaze with the
white wine and vinegar. Add the bay leaf and reduce over medium heat
until all the liquid has evaporated. Again, do not brown. Add the
heavy cream and reduce the mixture by half, whisking occasionally. Add
the remaining butternut squash puree. Remove pan from the heat and
immediately whisk in the butter until well incorporated. Strain through a
fine mesh strainer into a small bowl. Discard the solids. Cut the
vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds
to the sauce and season with salt and white pepper. Keep in a warm place
(not too hot or it will break) until service.
For the Presentation
Peel and cut the carrots into bâtonnets (small sticks
measuring ¼” x ¼” x 2” long), six per plate. Blanch the carrot sticks in
boiling water for two minutes, remove and shock in cold iced water until
cooled. Reserve.
Heat
oven to 350 degrees. Place Maine lobster (in prepared pans) in the
oven for 20 minutes. Boil salted water in a large sauce pan for the
spaghetti. Heat carrots in olive oil and season with salt and white
pepper. Add spaghetti to boiling water and cook for one minute or until
al dente. Strain pasta and reserve in a bowl, covered. Toss the
cooked spaghetti with half of the vanilla beurre blanc and season with salt and
white pepper. Remove Maine lobster meat from the oven. Spread out
the tail fin and place at the bottom of a warmed dinner plate. Make a
small nest of spaghetti in the center of the plate. Fan three of the
carrot bâtonnets on each side of the spaghetti nest (representing the legs of
the Maine lobsters). Slice the tail meat into six slices and place over
the spaghetti nest. Place the claws at 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock on the
plate and the knuckle meat below them. Top the tail meat with the vanilla
beurre blanc and sprinkle with the chopped chives. Serve immediately.
NUTRITIONAL:
Per serving:
calories
805
carbohydrate
74.6 g
cholesterol
182 mg
total
fat
36.3 g
protein
41.9 g
sodium
921 mg
dietary
fiber
4.8 g
calcium
223 mg
