Robin comes up with some really awesome dinner ideas. Here is one that, I think, she saw in a photo. (She has this knack of making items from a photo. She did her Prom dress from a photo when we went to the dance in 1960! I had to wait until she finished it. Her Dad just smiled.) I didn’t see the photo of this dish nor a recipe, which leads me to believe that the recipe for the dinner is, at best, an educated guess. And that makes it fun. Here’s the menu and recipe. The recipe looks long and involved. Read through it first – it is really pretty straight forward. Cheers!

Source: Robin Young
Serves: 2

Ingredients: (Lobster and Shrimp)
2 med Lobster Tails
12 med Shrimp

Directions:
Pre-Heat Oven to 375°F
Reserve all shells. Remove the lobster meal from the shell. Cut in half lengthwise. Shell and devein the shrimp. Lay the lobster meat from 1 tail on the edge of a 1-2 cup round ramekin. Place 6 shrimp in center of lobster ring. Repeat for a second ramekin. Set aside. Heat a ‘Bane Mare’ – jelly roll pan or baking dish with at least 1/2 inch of water for a hot water cooking bath to set the seafood ramekins in and bake.

Place all shells in a saucepan. Add any orange peel or lemon peel that you may have from making the salad and risotto. Cover with water and simmer until the lobster shells are a deep red and the shrimp shell are pink. Reduce heat and continue to simmer. This is the liquid for the risotto. You may need up to 4 cups for the risotto. Hot pack the remaining into canning jars. I ended up with 1 quart of the lobster stock canned.

Ingredients: (Risotto)
3 c Lobster broth (Above)
2 T Butter
3 T Shallot, minced
1 c Risotto
⅓ c dry White Wine
1 pinch Saffron
Sea Salt to taste
1 t Chives, chopped
1 t Lemon peek

Directions:
While cooking the risotto, bake the lobster and shrimp bowls in the water bath in the oven. It should take about 20 minutes.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the minced shallot and sauté until it is transparent. Add the risotto and stir until coated with the shallot/butter. Add the chives, lemon peel, wine and saffron and stir until the wine is completely absorbed. Add enough of the warm lobster broth to just cover the risotto. Cook over medium heat adding more broth as needed. Continue to cook until the risotto is soft, but not gummy. About 20 minutes.

Ingredients: (Herb Cream)
2 T Basil, chopped
1 t Tarragon, dried
¾ c Heavy Cream

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a small saucepan over med-low heat. Stir until the cream is reduced and thickened.

Ingredients: (Salad)
Fresh Fennel sliced
Fresh Orange sliced and peel removed
Fresh Mixed Greens
Flat Leaf Parsley

Directions:
Place the mixed greens on a plate. Place the orange and fennel on the greens.

Ingredients:
Truffle Oil
Ramekins
Frenched Green Beans, drained of all liquid [* Optional – just because I like to use up leftovers]

Directions:
Risotto
In each ramekin. place a drop or two of the truffle oil. Spread it all around using your finger. Place a ring of green beans along the bottom, leaving the center open. Add the risotto and fill to the top. Press down slightly to pack. Cool slightly. Loosen the edge with a fork.

Turn the ramekin upside down on the plate. The risotto should come out of the ramekin and maintain the round shape. See photo.

Lobster
Remove the lobster from the cooking bowl. Place in a ring on the plate. Place the shrimp in the center.

Drizzle a small amount of the Herb Cream on the lobster and shrimp mixture and on the risotto. Serve with a fine Riesling or German wine. Enjoy!!

Kitchen Notes:
1) The photo does not show the Herb Cream correctly. I did not get this thick enough. The Herb Cream should not be this runny. The original had one small ring of seafood on top of the risotto ring served with Bearnaise sauce,
2) Use the truffle oil sparingly. All you want is the essence of truffle. It does not take much to achieve this.
3) If you have questions, look at the photo. Left-Click the photo to enlarge it.