A Little Clambake

When you live in a studio apartment, people already think you're poor (and let's face it, you probably are). So it's important to serve rich and expensive looking dishes. I only have three chairs so that keeps the number of people I entertain to a minimum.  My best friend lives in Wicker Park, I live in Edgewater, though both neighborhoods are in Chicago, she's really lazy and only comes to my apartment twice a year - so go big or go home, right? A lot of people overestimate the cost and skill of cooking fresh (live) shellfish. If you're going to do it, summer is the time as market prices are super low since August is primo season for mussels and lobster. I found one pound lobsters for TEN DOLLARS each at this little Vietnamese seafood market on my side of town. The mussels were also a good price at Whole Foods. While this isn't quite a typical New England clambake, it did finally give me a chance to use the new enameled cast iron pot I've been dreaming about. 

Steamed Mussels

Ask me five years ago if I'd ever put one of these in my mouth...no way. Now that I'm a single mother, my palette has expanded. I made these once in a cooking class and fell in love, now I order them whenever I can. A few tips when purchasing live mussels: order by the pound, keep them cool but not submerged in water, if one is open and you cannot force it to shut - it's dead so throw it away. This recipe calls for dry vermouth, so you may as well buy the gin too and make dirty martinis! 

You will need the following 

1 lb live mussels

1/2 c dry vermouth (or white wine)

2 tbsp butter

1/4 c chopped fennel

2 tbsp chopped onion

1 tbsp chopped garlic

a dash of crushed red pepper

a pinch of dry thyme

salt & pepper 

bay leaf

Step 1: Clean mussels and trim them of their beards. In an enameled cast iron pot, bring vermouth, butter, fennel, garlic, onion and spices to a boil. 

Step 2: Toss in mussels and shake pot to evenly distribute broth. Steam with lid on for three to six minutes, or until mussels open. 

Step 3: Arrange mussels in a dish and boil broth one more minute. Ladle broth over mussels. Serve with warm crusty bread. 

Boiled Lobster

This was my first time boiling a whole lobster, and killing my own dinner. Lobsters are basically sea bugs, so I had no ethical conflict about sticking Clausen into boiling water. Once you're knuckle-deep in lobster flesh you won't even remember him crawling around in your fridge, they're pretty lazy anyways. Good lord this creature was delicious. There's a reason why they give you a bib when you order this out. It's nearly impossible to eat this like a gentleman, eventually you lay down your tools and dig out all that meat with your bare hands, butter dribbling down your face. If you don't have a seafood cracking set, improvise with household tools, like this pair of pliers. Eating lobster is an event, it takes considerable amount of time to hollow out these things. Take your time, savor each bite. 

You will need the following: 

Whole live lobsters

Enough water in a pot to cover lobster

butter

lemon wedges 

2 tbsp sea salt 

Step 1: Bring water and 2 tbsp sea salt to a boil. Submerge lobster (grab him beneath the claws) head first into the water. Cover and let boil for one minute per ounce.

Step 2: Make clarified butter by melting butter and skimming fat from the top. 

Step 3: Remove lobster, let rest on its back for a few minutes. Cut back and tail down the middle with kitchen sheers (craft scissors), dowse with warmed lemon wedges and get cracking! 

A Little Nor'easter Dinner Party

Welcome to the first installment of July's three-part regional cuisine month! Since it's 'merica's birthday month,  I will be featuring weekly foods and crafts influenced by the diverse-ish cultures we have in America. This week we're putting on our Top-Siders and seersucker for a nautical-themed dinner. Keep in mind that even though the menu sounds pricey, it's much cheaper than getting lobster at a restaurant. I mostly decided to get all fancy because my sister came to town and we're classy broads. Now pass me that Carlo Rossi!

Eastwick Cherry Pie

Of all the fruit pies, I think cherry is my second favorite. I try to make at least one per summer. What twenty-three year old boy has a ceramic pie plate? This lucky boy! Cherry pie can be really over the top or really trashy, I'd like to think mine is somewhere between Baker's Square and those Hostess snacky-pie-devil-thingies. I am reviled by canned fruit-goo pie filling, fruit pies should always be made with fresh fruit. Unless you have a handy-dandy cherry pitter (which I don't because that's stupid), be prepared for cherry juice to stain your fingers!

You will need the following:  

(for crust) 

2.5 c flour

2 sticks cold butter

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1/3 c + 1 tbsp ice water

(for filling)

1.5-2 lbs bing(er) cherries

3/4 c sugar

3 tbsp corn starch

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp pie spice

Step 1: Make the best pie crust ever by cutting little pieces of cold butter into dry ingredients. Push butter into flour until it's mostly smooth. Add little bits of cold water to bring dough together. Split dough in half and roll out two crusts. Wrap in plastic and chill. 

Step 2: Pit all your cherries by popping them in half, like so:

Step 3: Mix cherries with lemon juice, sugar, starch, spice and vanilla: 

Step 3: Fit one pie crust into pie plate: 

Step 4: Fill crust and begin building a lattice top from the second pie crust: 

Step 5: Brush top with milk and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Bake 425 for 30 mins. Remove pie and place it on a cookie sheet and reduce temp to 350. Bake 20-25 minutes longer. 

$ Baked Lobster Tails $

Nope, you're not at the Red Lobster, this is my apartment! Lobster (for two) is super simple and really not all that expensive. I got my frozen tails at the supermarket seafood counter. As long as you get cold water tails, they'll be fine. To distinguish between cold and warm water tails, look at some websites. This was my first experience with lobster in general, I used to be horribly allergic to shellfish...but after this dinner, I think I'm hooked. Sorry guys, no cheesy biscuits. 

you will need the following: 

2 (5oz) cold water lobster tails

1 stick of butter

1 lemon 

Paprika

2 cloves roasted garlic

Step 1: Prepare your marinade by melting butter and skimming the fat from the top. Squeeze in roasted garlic, lemon juice and paprika. Keep warm and liquidy.

Step 2: Once your tails thaw, take a pair of scissors and cut the shell down the middle: 

Step 3: This part is gross, but pull the meat away from the membrane, careful not to disconnect it from the shell. Push the broken shell back together and set the meat on top. Remove the vein and open the meat like butterfly wings. Baste in marinade and sprinkle with paprika: 

Step 4: Fill a cake pan with one tablespoon of water and bake tails for 20 minutes at 350. Serve with butter and hot lemon slices. Lobster should be served at 140 degrees.