Tonight’s Inspiration: Weekend special at Central Market – Lobster Tails $4.99 a piece (4oz); Snow Crab Clusters $4.99 a pound

Tonight’s Mission: Don’t overcook the Lobster!

Last Friday I was going about my everyday work routine when a lovely little email popped into my mail box – Central Market was having a weekend only special on seafood. But not just any seafood, Lobster and Crab! I am a lover of shell fish, but most of all, I am a lover of Lobster, especially Lobster tail. Unfortunately, I don’t usually cook, well I’ve never cooked, with said ingredient because of the expensive price tag. So when I saw the golden opportunity to try my hand at one of my favorite foods…I jumped.

The Menu:

• Four 4 oz Lobster Tails, Steamed
• Two Crab clusters, Pre-Cooked
• Boiled New Potatoes & Green Beans
• Sourdough Baguette with Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar
• Delicious White Wine

When I started to prep everything I have to admit, I was pretty nervous. This was my first chance to really show off to my hubby in the kitchen, and make him his FAVORITE food for the first time. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. The first question was, how do I cook it? After conversing with Matt we decided that the potential for failure was greater with the grill, I would probably most definitely overcook it in the oven, and boiling just didn’t seem that sexy. So the verdict was STEAMING. Second question, these lovely little creatures look so nice and snug in their shells. Do I just drop them in to the steam basic as is, or do I have to cut into something? I have one very trusty friend that I turn to in times of need in the kitchen…Google.

After reading a few pages on “Cooking Lobster Tails” and watching a few video demonstrations I felt like I was ready to begin. I very carefully cut the tops of the tails in half (the shell, not the meat) with my handy dandy kitchen shears. Then, using my thumbs I gently pulled the meat away from the shell. Once I reached the bottom I carefully lifted the meat out of its home and placed it on top of the shell. (Make sure you don’t cut the slit all the way to the bottom. Stop right before you get to the bottom fin in order to keep the meat and shell attached). After my first try I must say, I was pretty proud of myself. The next four were a breeze. After I had my meat nice and positioned, I lightly dusted it with salt, pepper, and Paprika.

While I was prepping my Lobster I had a pot of boiling water ready to go on the stove. I took half a pound of fresh green beans (trimmed and rinsed), and one pound of red potatoes (rinsed and quartered), dropped them in the boiling water, and generously salted the water. I prefer my potatoes and green beans to be cooked slightly more than al dente.

I retrieved my steamer from the cabinet and boiled one cup of salted water, then inserted the steamer basket. It was time!!! I placed all four tails in the top basic and set the timer to 7 minutes.

In the meantime I had pre-heated my oven to 400 degrees in order to heat up my crab clusters. When I had 4 minutes left on the timer I put the Crab, on a baking dish, in the oven to heat up.

Once the timer beeped I removed my Lobster from the heat and took the Crab out of the oven. My potatoes and green beans were nice and soft, and the bread was sliced and ready to be served. Oh, and lets not forget the butter. I grabbed some roasted garlic compound butter from Central Market, popped it in the microwave for 25 seconds, and now we were officially ready.

Well, I have to say, it was DELISH! Especially when accompanied with a nice glass of White Wine (Soave Italia to be exact). Thank you Weekend Specials for giving us a reason to cook up a pretty awesome dinner for a Sunday night.

I can now say I’ve cooked Lobster, and it was pretty easy. Hopefully the next special won’t be too far down the road.

The B52’s: I love the B52’s. Their music is so fun and catchy, and well, hilarious. This song popped in my head while I was cooking tonight and I knew it was the perfect choice! So have fun and dance, because this song definitely puts a smile on my face.