Lobster And Shiitake Ragu With Celery Root Puree Recipes

CELERY ROOT PUREE

Steps:

• Place celery root, 1/2 of the lemon juice, and kosher salt in a large pot and cover with water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain.
• Blend celery root, cream, and butter in a blender until smooth. Push puree into a bowl through a fine-mesh strainer with a wooden spoon or spatula until puree is completely smooth. Drizzle remaining lemon juice into puree and season with salt and cayenne pepper.

LOBSTER AND SHIITAKE RAGU WITH CELERY ROOT PUREE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add lobsters and cook for 6 minutes. Remove from water. Remove meat from tails and claws, leaving claw meat intact; set meat aside, reserving shells and bodies for stock.
• Heat oil in a large high-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and garlic, and cook until soft and translucent. Add mushrooms, celery root, carrot, and celery; cook, stirring, until tender, about 10 minutes. Add Brussels sprout leaves and cook, stirring, until caramelized, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Carefully add Madeira and deglaze. Add lobster stock, sage, and tomato; reduce heat to a simmer and cook until thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add speck and butter; cook, stirring, until butter is melted.
• Add lobster meat to skillet; cover and cook until just heated through, 8 to 10 minutes. Do not boil. Remove skillet from heat and drizzle lobster mixture with olive oil; sprinkle with chives and parsley.
• Divide the celery root puree evenly between two plates; top with lobster mixture. Set claws in the center of each plate and garnish with radish sprouts; serve immediately.

CELERY ROOT PUREE

Steps:

• Place the celery root in a large pot and cover it with the milk by a few inches. (You may not need to use all the milk.) Add a few pinches of salt along with some freshly grated nutmeg. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer until the celery root is fork tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain, reserving about 1/4 cup milk, then return the celery root to the pot.
• Place the pot over medium heat and let the celery root dry out for a minute or 2. Add the reserved milk and mash or puree using a potato masher or blender until very smooth. Check for seasoning, adding more salt if necessary.

LOBSTER IN LEMONGRASS BROTH WITH TRUFFLED SHIITAKE FLANS

Steps:

• Fill the sink with cold water and add ice cubes. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil.
• Meanwhile, numb the lobsters by placing them in the freezer for 30 minutes. Transfer them to a heavy cutting board, insert the tip of a large, heavy knife at the base of the heads, and cut completely through. Remove the claws, knuckles (the sections beneath the claws), and tails. Set the bodies aside for the broth. Cut the tails in half lengthwise up to the flat feathery appendages at the base of the tails (these remain intact) and reserve.
• Transfer the claws to a large heatproof bowl, pour the boiling water over them to cover, and allow them to cook, about 5 minutes. After 3 minutes, add the knuckles. Remove the lobster parts and plunge into the ice water. When the lobster is cold, remove the mea tand reserve.
• To make the broth, split the reserved lobster bodies. Heat a large, heavy pot over high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pot. When the oil shimmers, add the lobster bodies and saute, stirring, until the shells turn red, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste, fennel, onion, carrot, celery, lemongrass, and ginger and saute, stirring, until the vegetables are soft, about 8 minutes. Add the wine, stir, and reduce the liquid by half, 10 to 15 minutes. Do not boil; it will cloud the broth. Add the bay leaf, peppercorns, and about 8 cups of water to cover the bodies. Reduce the heat and simmer for 2 hours, strain, and keep hot.
• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. To make the flans, heat a medium skilled over high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan. When the oil shimmers, add the shallots and saute, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and place in the freezer to chill quickly, about 15 minutes. When cold, add the eggs, cream, scallions, and truffle oil and mix.
• Fill a kettle with water and bring to a boil. Spray four 4-ounce ramekins lightly with nonstick cooking spray and have ready a baking dish large enough to hold them. Fill the ramekins four-fifths full with the flan mixture and transfer them to the pan. Add sufficient boiling water to the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins and transfer to the oven. Bake just until the flans are set, about 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, season the reserved lobster tails with the salt and pepper to taste. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add the canola oil and swirl to coat the pan. When the oil shimmers, add the tails, feeler sides down. Cook, turning once, until the shells turn red, about 5 minutes. Add the claws, stir, and add 3 cups of the broth. Add the lemon juice and season with the salt and pepper to taste.
• Divide the fondue among 4 large pasta bowls. Carefully invert a flan onto each portion. Top with the lobster tail and claws and ladle the broth around. Garnish with the scallions and serve.
• To make the fondue, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and swirl to coat the pan. Add the garlic and ginger and saute, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the bok choy and 1/2 cup of the reserved lobster broth. Season with the salt and pepper to taste and cook until the bok choy is soft, about 5 minutes. Fold in the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter, correct the seasonings, and keep warm. Add the knuckles right before serving to warm.

CELERY ROOT PUREE

Steps:

• Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until celery root is tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer celery root and cooking liquid to the jar of a blender; carefully puree until smooth. Keep warm until ready to serve.

CELERY ROOT BISQUE WITH SAUTEED LOBSTER

Steps:

• Set a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and once hot, saute the onions, parsnips and celery until softened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic to the pan and saute until fragrant, 45 to 60 seconds. Place the celery root, stock, salt and cayenne pepper in the saucepan and ring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until the celery root is tender, about 35 to 40 minutes.
• When the celery root is tender, remove the saucepan from the heat and puree the soup using an immersion blender (or in batches using a bar blender), until smooth. Taste, and re-season the soup if necessary and garnish with the parsley. Serve with 3 tablespoons of the sauteed lobster per soup bowl.
• Set a large 2 to 3-gallon stockpot to boil over high heat. Once the water comes to a boil, immerse the lobster in the pot. Cook the lobsters for 3 minutes, remove, and chill immediately in ice water. Once the lobster is cool enough to handle, remove from the water and place on a kitchen towel draped over a cutting board. Use a mallet to crack the shells, and remove the meat from the tail, claws and knuckles. Dice the lobster meat into 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
• Set a 10-inch saute pan over medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter begins to foam, add the shallots and garlic. Saute the shallots and garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the lobster meat and season with the Essence and salt. Saute the lobster until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and raise the heat to high. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the celery leaves to the lobster and toss to blend. Remove from the heat and set aside for the soup.

GARLIC POTATO PURéE WITH SHIITAKE RAGOûT AND POTATO CRISPS

Steps:

• Brush a baking sheet well with some of the oil. In a food processor fitted with the 2-millimeter slicing disk or with a hand-held slicing device slice thin the potato on the diagonal (cut one end of the potato on the diagonal to facilitate this) and arrange the slices immediately in one layer on the sheet. Brush the slices with the remaining oil, sprinkle them with salt to taste, and bake them in the middle of a preheated 400°F. oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Transfer the crisps while they are still warm with a metal spatula to a rack and let them cool. The crisps may be made several days in advance and kept in a plastic bag at room temperature.
• Peel the potatoes, quarter them lengthwise, and cut them into 1-inch pieces. Reserving 3 of the garlic cloves for the ragout, in a steamer set over boiling water steam the remaining garlic cloves with the potatoes, covered, for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are very tender. Force the steamed garlic and the potatoes through a ricer or food mill fitted with the medium disk into a large bowl, stir in the butter, the milk, and salt and pepper to taste, and keep the purée warm, covered. The purée may be made 1 day in advance, kept covered and chilled, and reheated.
• In a large heavy skillet heat the oil over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking and in it saute the mushrooms with the reserved garlic cloves, minced, and salt and pepper to taste for 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are softened and any liquid they give off is evaporated. Add the Sherry and boil the mixture until almost all the liquid is evaporated. Add the broth and the soy sauce and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir the cornstarch mixture, stir it into the sauce, and simmer the ragout, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Stir in the parsley. The ragout may be made 1 day in advance, kept covered and chilled, and reheated.
• Divide the purée among 8 heated small plates, mounding it, arrange 3 crisps decoratively in each mound, and spoon the ragout over and around the purée.

BRAISED CELERY ROOT PURéE WITH MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a small pot, bring 3 cups water to a boil. Remove from the heat, add the porcini and let sit for 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl and set aside. Rinse and chop the mushrooms.
• Fill a large bowl with cold water and add all but 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Peel, quarter and cut the celery root into 1/4-inch-thick slices and add to the water.
• Place a large, ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Heat 1/4 cup of the oil, then add the leek, onion, garlic, thyme sprigs, bay leaf and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Sauté until the onions are translucent.
• Drain the celery root and add it to the onion mixture with the reserved mushroom broth and milk. Bring to a boil, cover tightly and transfer to the oven. Braise until the celery root is tender, about 40 minutes.
• Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs. Using a blender or immersion blender, carefully blend the mixture to a smooth purée. (For a finer texture, strain through a fine-mesh sieve.) Place the pot over low heat and simmer until it reaches the consistency of porridge. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the remaining 1/4 cup oil. Add the fresh mushrooms and sauté until the water releases and evaporates. Add the rehydrated porcini and chopped thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• To serve, place a few spoonfuls of the purée on each plate and drizzle with truffle oil, if using. Top with mushrooms and Parmesan.