Valentine's Dinner for 2 - Lobster Risotto

Skipped the overcrowded and over priced Valentine's prix fix dinner out and did a special dinner at home.  Started with 4 raw oysters each from the Reel Seafood Company, they were fresh and delicious and came on a bed of ice and we opened a nice bottle of champagne.  Main course was lobster risotto served with roasted asparagus with red grapes and mixed green salad topped with roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, toasted pignoli with a citrus vinaigrette. (all left over from earlier meals).

Lobster Risotto with Shitake Mushrooms and Tarragon

Risotto is my absolute favorite thing to make and eat and does not need a lot of added butter and heavy cream to make it delicious and creamy.  Once you have the basic technique mastered, you can make all kind of creative versions.  There is something really comforting about stirring the rice on the stove especially if you have a glass of wine at hand.

2 lobster tails (or 1 lobster)
1 medium onion diced
Olive Oil
1/2 cup arborio rice
White Wine
1 tsp melted butter
Lemon
3/4 cup shitake mushrooms, stems removed
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
Chicken Broth
Parmesan Cheese

Poach the lobster in salted water, saving the poaching liquid.  Cool and cut the meat into chunks, add the butter and a squeeze of lemon, set aside.

In a large straight sided skillet saute the mushrooms in a little olive oil until lightly browned.  Remove and slice and reserve.

Saute the onions in the skillet until soft, add the rice and cook for a few minutes until a little bit toasted.  Add a good splash of white wine and cook until almost evaporated.  (I do this in advance and just park the rice until 40 minutes before we are ready to serve.)

Combine the lobster cooking liquid with chicken stock in equal parts for about 6 cups, heat to a slow simmer.  Put your stock pot on the rear burned behind the risotto pan and add about 1/2 cup of stock to the rice at a time, waiting for the liquid to absorb between additions.  This will take about 35 - 40 minutes for the rice to be cooked, keep tasting until the rice is tender and creamy.

Add the mushrooms, lobster and fresh tarragon.   Sprinkle a handful of Parmesan cheese and grate about 1/2 tsp lemon peel.   Season with salt and pepper if needed. (depends on how salty your broth is).  This made about 3 good sized portions (nice to have lobster risotto leftover! ).

Roasted Asparagus with Red Grapes

Nothing is easier... spray trimmed asparagus and red grapes with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast at 400 for about 10 - 15 minutes, depends on the thickness of the asparagus.

Antipasto Platter

Family dinner for 10 on Saturday night started off with a first course Antipasto salad.  An easy and impressive way to serve store bought ingredients with a home made balsamic vinaigrette passed so everyone can control how much dressing they like.  I like to arrange the ingredients in piles and serve with tongs so you can pick and choose which ingredients you like.  This platter for 10 included:


3 heads of Romaine Lettuce Hearts shredded
1/4 lb Genoa salami, sliced thick at the deli and julienned
8 oz fresh mozzarella, either the little balls or diced
10 paper thin slices good prosciutto
1/2 cup mixed olives
2 roasted beets ( I had these left over) sliced
Provolone cheese julienned
Sliced pepperoni
Jar of yellow and red peppers packed in water, sliced

Balsamic Vinaigrette

10 tbls balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
24 tbls extra virgin olive oil

Whisk vinegar, salt, pepper and mustard until thickened.  Add the oil a little at a time whisking so the dressing emulsifies.

Roasted Beet and Citrus Salad and Roasted Cauliflower Pasta

From February Bon Appetit

This is a lovely filling side salad or would be good as a first course.  Got to love citrus, between the grapefruit and orange sections and the citrus vinaigrette, the citrus flavor is pretty strong.  It's a little time consuming to peel and section the fruit and to roast the beets.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Roasted-Beets-and-Citrus-with-Feta-363732

Served with Roasted Cauliflower Pasta which was easy and delicious.

Cut a small head of cauliflower into florets.  Cut a red onion into wedges.  Roast on a sheet pan with olive oil, salt and pepper at 400 for about 10 - 15 minutes, until starting to brown.  Add 1/4 cup of golden raisins, some fresh thyme or sage, roast another 10 - 15 minutes.  Serve over whole wheat penne pasta and toss with 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese and a little of the pasta cooking water.

Asparagus Stir Fry

There aren't too many times I use frozen vegetables, but a bag of Bird's Eye asparagus stir fry is a great staple to have in your freezer.  Along with some chicken or shrimp and a little creative additions you have an easy, healthy meal any night of the week and you can use up any vegetables you have on hand.

1 medium onion, chopped
2 gloves garlic, minced
Olive Oil Spray
8 ounces shrimp or chicken strips
1 bag Bird's Eye Asparagus Stir Fry
Chinese Five Spice Seasoning
Fresh ginger
Mango Chutney or Apricot Jam
White wine or chicken stock
Sesame oil
Sesame seeds for topping
Any additional veggies in your fridge, asparagus, broccoli, pepper strips, etc.

Saute the onion in olive oil spray until soft, add garlic and grated fresh ginger and cook a few more minutes.  Season the shrimp with salt and five spice seasoning. Saute until just cooked through, remove shrimp to a plate.  If adding your own vegetables, saute those first (steam in the microwave if they need a little cooking first, like asparagus or broccoli).  Add a small splash of sesame oil and the veggies to the pan and soften, add the bag of frozen stir fry.  Cook aout 5 minutes, add a little white wine or chicken broth. then stir in about a tablespoon of jam or chutney. Sprinke with toastsed sesame seeds.

Balsamic Braised Chicken Thighs

Adapted this recipe from a Weight Watchers friendly cookbook from the Culinary Institute of America.
Served with Roasted Butternut Squash.

4 skinless boneless chicken thighs
3 tbls flour
3 tbls parmesan cheese
Olive Oil spray
1 fennel bulb, sliced
1 red or yellow pepper, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

Season thighs with salt and pepper, combine the flour and cheese in a zip lock bag, add chicken and shake to coat.  Heat a skillet, spray with oil and saute chicken until browned on both sides. Transfer to a plate.  Add vegetables and another spray of oil and saute until very soft.  Sprinkle the remaining flour and cheese mixture over the vegetables, mix well and add organge juice and vinegar.  Cook a few minutes until the flour is incorporated, add chicken breasts, reduce heat and simmer until cooked through. I added a little chicken stock as the mixture was getting too thick. 

Chicken Wings

Superbowl Sunday Dave broke out the Big Green Egg and smoked chicken wings.  He seasoned them with salt and pepper, cooked them around 250 degrees for about 30 minutes, then brushed them with hot pepper sauce mixed with a little melted butter. Way better than take out!

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Was in the mood for something spicy, hearty and not too heavy.  Made Giada's Shrimp Fra Diavolo, although I used a little less  olive oil, added sliced mushrooms and didn't have the fresh basil.  The recipe is for 4 people, I cut the shrimp in half but still made all the sauce.  Served with a nice salad and crusty garlic bread (for Dave).  It was tasty!http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/shrimp-fra-diavolo-recipe/index.html

Back to Counting Points...

Returned to Weight Watchers meeting on Monday, so am trying hard to create tasty meals that don't blow the point count!  Tuesday night we had sausage and peppers and Wednesday, chicken teriyaki.

Chicken Sausage and Peppers

Spray a skillet with olive oil, put in your raw chicken sausages and cover with about one inch of water.  Boil until the water evaporates, turning frequently, then let the sausage brown in the pan.  Saute sliced vidalia onion, red pepper and green pepper in a spray of olive oil in a oven proof casserole until soft.  Add a can of diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and bring to a boil.  Add the sausages, cover and place the pot in a 375 oven.  Bake for about 45 minutes.  Serve with whole wheat pasta.  4 ounces of chicken is 4 points and 1/2 cup of pasta is 2 points. The veggies are zero!

Chicken Teriyaki

Pound boneless chicken breats to about 1/2 inch thickness.  Season with Five Spice Powder then marinate in a mixture of bottled teriyaki sauce, minced garlic, grated fresh ginger and Chinese BBQ sauce (or whatever you have on hand).  Saute in a spray of olive oil until cooked through.  I served it with a little mango coconut sauce from Fresh Market that they use for their coconut shrimp, a salad with roasted asparagus and my favorite mashed cauliflower.




Mashed Cauliflower

Cut up a small head of a cauliflower into florets, bring to a boil with about a cup of chicken stock and simmer covered until really soft.  Drain excess broth and mash the cauliflower, add 1 cube of Laughing Cow cheese and mash until pretty smooth.  I usually use the Swiss flavor, then add a grating of fresh nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste.  This time I tried the Chipolte Chile flavor and it gave it a nice kick!

Thanks to a Good Friend!

No cooking last night, thanks to a great friend who sent over a delicious chilli dinner with cornbread.  The chili had black olives in it, really interesting!