Feeding Groom's Grilled Lobster Provencal

One of the truly great party weekends in Nashville is just around the corner.

The Iroquois Steeplechase.

Visualize yourself on a beautiful sunny day, dressed up in the cutest dress, a faboo hat and totally inappropriate shoes hiking several miles to your box where you’ll spend a delightful afternoon watching horses fling themselves around a track and people slowly turn the color of lobsters.

Which brings me to my subject.

Lunch.

You’ve delegated beverage, nibble and dessert duty to fellow box members. It’s up to you to bring it on and blow them away with the main course.
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Enter a cold grilled lobster with a knock out baby new potato and haricot verts salad .A divine Dijon vinaigrette, a few toasted pine nuts, Kalamata olives just add to the total outrageousness of this meal. if you don’t want to deal with the shell, make the salad, put it on some mixed baby romaine and top with the chopped grilled lobster and fresh basil. Add a few lemon wedges for a quick squeeze on top and you’ve got one hell of a lunch.

Party on!


Feeding Groom’s Grilled Lobster Provencal

Dressing:

3 tbs Champagne vinegar
1 tsp minced shallot
2 tsp Dijon mustard
½ cup roasted garlic olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix the champagne vinegar, shallot and mustard in small bowl. Slowly drizzle the oil into the bowl as you whisk until the dressing emulsifies. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

The Lobster Tails:

Preheat your grill to high if gas, or get the charcoal going.

2 large lobster tails
Roasted garlic olive oil for brushing

Salad:

1 pound baby new potatoes, cooked until just tender, cut in half
½ pound haricots verts, also known as French green beans, blanched
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted
¼ cup fresh basil, cut into chiffonade
¼ cup Kalamata olives, pitted
6 perfectly ripe small tomatoes, quartered ( grape tomatoes work well)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a dab of olive oil. Add lobster tails and cook for six minutes at the boil. Drain and when cool enough to handle, take a pair of kitchen scissors and cut right down the middle of the flesh side of the lobster. Don’t cut all the way through. Clean the hard shell off the flesh side and with the scissors, cut to expose the flesh so it will grill evenly.


When your fire is ready, brush the lobster tails with the roasted garlic olive oil and cook 3 minutes a side.
Remove the flesh from the lobster tail and chop in bite sized pieces. Toss with a bit of roasted garlic oil and season with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Combine salad ingredients, toss with dressing to taste.

Fill the lobster tail with the chopped lobster. Arrange salad next to the lobster and sprinkle with the fresh basil.

Serves 2.

Click here for a printable recipe!

One Year Ago on Feeding Groom

Two Years Ago on Feeding Groom

Feeding Groom's Grilled Lobster Provencal

Mesa Grill Barbecue Sauce and a Southern Salad Nicoise

I used to walk in the mornings.
Three and a half miles a day.
Crack of dawn.
It was great. Loved doing it. Quiet, neighborhood sleeping, great start to the day, right.

I’m now walking in the afternoons when I get home from work.
Still three and a half miles.
It’s not quiet.
The neighborhood is not sleeping.
It’s cooking.

Outside.

It’s sort of inspirational if you think about it.
Take the other evening.
Now that I think about it, I am not sure I walked on one of the streets because someone was grilling chicken and basting it with something sweet. I think I was floating past that house….

It’s hard to walk and drool, but I’ve just about mastered it.

Then…I noticed a family with small children having dinner at their picnic table. Bowls all over the table, family laughing and eating, dog begging. Straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Potato salad, fried chicken…

That did it

Instead of listening to Free Food for Millionaires, which is a great book but has nothing to do with food, I started thinking about our dinner.

Started thinking about barbecuing chicken.
Thinking about potato salad.
Thought about salad Nicoise.
Tuna, Nicoise olives, hard boiled eggs, green beans, tomatoes, , potatoes, right?
Smelled that grilled chicken again.
Thought about the components of a great Southern meal.
Grilled chicken, deviled eggs, tomato basil salad, classic potato salad.
Put the two thoughts together and came up with this.

Barbecued Chicken with Mesa Grill Barbecue Sauce: a sauce everyone should keep in the fridge during the hot months.
Groom’s Devilish Eggs with Green Olives …do the basic deviled eggs…a little Hellmann’s mayo, chopped green olives, paprika
Classic Potato Salad …soak the red onions before using to get the strength out….use a bit of sissy mustard in the dressing to make it even classic -er
Fresh Herb Salad Mix…it’s good for you….
Tomato, Artichoke, Sugar Snap and fresh Basil…blanch the sugar snaps and drop in ice water to preserve the color. Use marinated artichoke hearts…provides the dressing, right? A bit of freshly ground black pepper and fresh basil.

See?

A Southern Nicoise Salad.
For lack of a better name.

I wonder what the neighbors will be cooking this afternoon?

Mesa Grill Barbecue Sauce
Adapted From Bobby Flay

A couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil
½ red onion, diced
1 large spoonful garlic confit
8 canned San Marzano tomatoes
¼ cup ketchup
½ cup red wine vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire
¼ cup water
3 tbsp dark molasses
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 tbsp wild honey
1 tsp cayenne
1 tbsp ancho chile powder
1 tbsp smoked sweet paprika

Heat the olive oil til almost smoking in large pan over medium heat and sweat the onion and garlic confit until softened, about five minutes. Throw tomatoes into food processor and pulse two times, add to pan. Cook 15 minutes at a simmer. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 20 minutes. Put into food processor and pulse several times.
Let cool to room temperature.
Makes about 2-2.5 cups

Click here for a printable recipe!

One Year Ago on Feeding Groom

Mesa Grill Barbecue Sauce and a Southern Salad Nicoise

Braised Pork Loin in Tomatillo-Chipotle Sauce

Before....

After...


One thing leads to another.

Always.

This beautiful braised pork loin in a tomatillo chipotle sauce led to a black bean and pork stew over twice cooked new potatoes topped with a cool salad of mixed greens, campari tomatoes finished with fresh avocado, a squeeze of lime, a splat of sour cream and fresh cilantro.

Two entirely different approaches to one main dish.

Too good.

Braised Pork Loin in Tomatillo Chipotle Sauce
Adapted from Rick Bayless Mexico One Plate at a Time

2 pounds pork loin roast
10 tomatillos, husked and rinsed
5 plum tomatoes, rinsed
1 chipotle en adobo sauce
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Big spoonful garlic confit
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1 large sweet yellow onion, sliced thin
5 medium Yukon gold potatoes, washed and halved

Do a good swirl extra virgin olive oil in a Dutch oven large enough to hold the pork roast. Heat medium high. Add the pork roast…brown about five minutes on both sides. Season with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from the Dutch oven and set aside.
Add the sliced onion to the Dutch oven and cook til caramelized, about 20 minutes. Add the garlic confit and smush into the onions.

Preheat broiler and roast tomatoes and tomatillos til blackened in oven, whirl in a blender and add with 1-1.2 cups chicken broth to caramelized onion and garlic. Add the fresh cilantro. Lower oven to 325 degrees put the pork in onion tomatillo sauce, cover it and put in the oven for 30 minutes.

Boil the Yukon gold potatoes in salted water for 20 minutes. When the pork has cooked for 30 minutes add the potatoes to the pork. Let cook 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for five minutes before slicing. Sprinkle with a bit of fresh cilantro before serving.

Serves 4 generously.

Click here for a printable recipe!

Black Bean and Braised Pork Stew on Twice Cooked Potatoes

I had leftover sauce, potatoes and pork.
Slice the leftover pork. Put in a sauce pan.
Add one can black beans, drained and set over medium heat.

Slice the leftover cooked potatoes.
Heat a medium skillet add a bit of olive oil and put sliced potatoes in the skillet.
Cook, pressing down til hot and then turning several times til golden brown.

Add 1/3 cup chopped cilantro to stew.

Serve potato with stew over. Top with fresh mixed greens, sliced avocado, quartered tomatoes, a splat of sour cream and a squeeze of fresh lime and cilantro.

Serves 3 generously.


One Year Ago on Feeding Groom

Braised Pork Loin in Tomatillo-Chipotle Sauce

Out of India

There are many times, when decision making in this house takes on a life of its own.

Here at the elegant Red Brick Ranchero, you have one Gemini sun Libra rising with a total of four planets in Gemini conversing with a Taurus sun Gemini rising with a total of two planets in Gemini and two in Taurus. So once Groom, the Taurus, makes his mind up…something inside makes him change it.

Makes him nuts.

While the Sybil of the family, me, is in the kitchen reading five cookbooks at the same time trying to make a decision about what to do for dinner and having an inner monologue with several of me as to how many dishes to cook.

And once the Taurus sun Gemini rising thinks he has helped to make the actual decision the Gemini sun Libra rising is off on another tangent, all the while Groom is, once again, highly pleased with his contribution to dinner.

The conversation goes like this:

Groom honey, what would you like for dinner.

Oh, I don’t know what do you want?

Well, I was thinking about doing something spicy, maybe curry.

It doesn’t matter to me, surprise me.

Does that mean you want spicy food tonight?

That would be great. I love spicy let’s have Mexican.

I was reading Maddhur Jaffrey’s cookbook and I thought about a curry.

Whatever you want to fix will be fine with me. Just surprise me. I love enchiladas.

Perfect. We’ll do vegetarian tonight. Potato Cauliflower Curry. Mushroom Bhaji..yum yum. This is going to be good.

Do they have enchiladas in India? Mushroom Bhaji, I like that, don't I?

Groom, you‘re brilliant. Excellent idea for dinner.

I don’t know how I do it.


Mushroom Bhaji

1 package white button mushrooms cut in halves, wiped with paper towel
2 onions, finely chopped
2 fresh medium tomatoes, grated
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
4 fat cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp medium hot chili powder
Coarse salt to taste
Fresh cilantro, chopped for garnish

Heat two good swirls extra virgin olive oil in a pan and saute onions ginger and garlic until golden brown.

Add tomato, garam masala, salt, chili powder, ground cumin and saute 10 minutes.

Add mushroom and about a ¼ cup water.

Cook till the mushrooms are tender. If dry out, just add a bit more water and stir well.
Garnish with finely chopped cilantro.

Serves 3.

Potato and Cauliflower Curry Punjabi Style
adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's From Curries to Kebabs

1 cup chopped sweet yellow onion
2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
5 fat cloves garlic, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
3 good sized Yukon gold potatoes, boiled, cooled, and cut into about 1 inch chunks
1 medium sized head cauliflower, cut florets into pieces slightly bigger than the potatoes
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup grated tomatoes
Crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Put the onion, ginger, garlic and 4 tbsp water in food processor or blender and blend until smooth.

Put enough olive oil into large Dutch oven to cover bottom, about a ¼ inch of oil and set over medium high heat. When oil shimmers, put in the potatoes and cauliflower. Fry, stirring until they are lightly browned ,remove with slotted spoon and set aside.

Add cumin seeds, then onion mix from the food processor. Stir for 3 to 4 minutes. Add coriander, cumin, turmeric and cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Then add tomatoes and cook continuing to stir for another 5 minutes. Now add cauliflower and potatoes, 2-1/2 cups to 3 cups water, and salt to taste.

Let cook, covered til cauliflower is done, test after ten minutes.

Serves 4-5.

Out of India

Grilled Swordfish with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Piperade

Have you ever had one of those days when nothing goes exactly wrong but then nothing goes exactly right? But it all turns out okay anyway? That was the case Friday when I cooked an absolute genius of a dish, if I say so myself, but the pictures didn't do it justice. The dish was Grilled Swordfish on Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Piperade. The potatoes were divine at Thanksgiving. I thought that swordfish would work beautifully with the flavors of the Piperade.

When I plated this, I decided in my infinite wisdom to put the potatoes on the bottom and the Piperade on the top. Well, we all know why Fingerling potatoes are called Fingerling. they could be called something else, probably sell a whole lot more of them due to the shape...are you with me here? ...any way, the porn star of Fingerling potatoes happened to be on the plate in a very odd position when I took the picture. Everything was aimed at this very well endowed Fingerling. I must admit that a little House Red had passed through my ruby lips by the time I took the picture, so I didn't notice that the picture was not as good as it should be until Groom, passing by, not one to say an unkind word, said, “Honey, maybe you need to take a closer look at this picture.”

I've pondered this now for three days and have decided to go on and post the recipe without the picture because it's so good, and I don't think a picture is what truly sells a recipe. I know I’ve discussed when you have to stand up and slap something because the food is so good. Our dogs were even hiding. They knew I was looking at them funny. This was that good.
Use your imagination and make this.

Grilled Swordfish with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Piperade
Adapted from Bon Appetit’s November 2007 issue


2 -7 ounce swordfish steaks, about ½ to ¾ inch thick, seasoned with a little olive oil, salt and coarsely ground black pepper and a good squeeze of lemon juice
1 pound fingerling potatoes, cut in half
3 red and yellow bell peppers, seeded and stemmed and sliced
½ red onion, sliced
1 shallot, peeled and chopped
1 small handful fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 small handful fresh basil, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and coarsely ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400‘. Put sliced bell peppers and red onion on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for about 10 minutes.
Layer the potatoes on top of the potatoes and roast for 35 minutes.
Then top with the shallots and parsley and basil and roast for five more minutes. Season with olive oil and salt and coarsely ground black pepper. You can do this ahead. Watch the peppers and the onions and be sure they don’t blacken.
Heat grill pan on top of stove. Grill swordfish for about 6 minutes per side.
Put the potatoes on the plate and top with the swordfish and a bit of the Piperade. Take a bite.
Slap something.
Serves 2.

Grilled Swordfish with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Piperade