MONDAY
Corn Soup with Fresh Maine Lobster | Heirloom Tomato & Arugula Salad
If I had to define the month of August in terms of food it would be: corn, tomatoes & lobster. I have childhood memories of stopping by roadside vegetable stands on our way home from the beach, sunburnt and sand between our toes, trying to pick the biggest, most perfect ears of corn for dinner. A slathering of butter on the steaming hot corn and a tomato from the garden, sliced with a sprinkling of salt and pepper delivered a taste that I still wait all year long to experience. And I have fond memories of my very first lobster boil at Crane’s Beach after the annual Sand Sculpture Competition so many years ago.
For this very simple dinner, selecting the freshest ingredients is so important. The tomatoes came from my garden…
And markets and stands are brimming with tender sweet corn right now…Click here for a great article, “How to Choose and Ear of Corn {Without Peeking}“, from Food52…
The live Maine lobster came from our local fish market…The Seafood Peddler…in Sausalito. Max and I hand-picked this 2-pound beauty and the lovely folks at The Seafood Peddler steamed it for us while we enjoyed a light lunch in the restaurant…
Tonight’s dinner preparation began with the soup. I adapted a recipe {Corn Soup with Lobster & Avocado} from Canal House Cooking, Volume No. 4 which is actually for a chilled soup. I really didn’t feel like a chilled soup this evening so I turned this recipe into a warm, delightful soup that ended up tasting like a smooth, creamy version of hot, buttered corn-on-the-cob.
I left out the avocado, called for in the original recipe, and added some scallions…
While the soup simmered on the stove {about 30-40 minutes} I cracked the lobster to get the meat we would add to the soup just before serving. In case you are new to cracking open a lobster, click here for a video tutorial.
Corn Soup with Lobster {adapted from Canal House Cooking, Volume No. 4}
- 8 ears of corn, shucked
- 6 cups of whole milk
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 large bunch of scallions, sliced {reserving about a ¼ cup for garnish}
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Meat from one cooked lobster {our lobster weighed in at 2 pounds which was more than enough}
- Cut the corn kernels off the cobs into a large pot, scraping the cobs to release their milky juice. Break each cob in two pieces. Add all the cobs to the pot along with the milk. Add red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper.
- Add the scallions and stir. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Adjust the heat to maintain a very low simmer, cover and cook 30-40 minutes.
- Using tongs, remove and discard the cobs. Purée the soup in a blender and then transfer to a clean pot. Reheat soup to a low simmer and add butter, stirring until butter is melted. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
- Ladle soup into individual serving bowls and garnish with some of the lobster meat and scallions. Serve immediately.
Tomatoes this time of year don’t require a lot of fussing, they are so wonderfully sweet on their own. Peppery arugula adds a nice bite to this side salad which is dressed simply with a drizzle olive oil and a sprinkling of flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Tonight’s dinner plate…
