Celery Root Bisque With Sauteed Lobster Food

CELERY ROOT BISQUE (WITH LOBSTER)

Steps:

• Set a heavy 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and butter and once melted, sauté the onion, potato, celery, shallot, Serrano, and garlic until softened and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until the wine is completely absorbed, about 7 - 10 minutes.
• Add the celery root, stock, salt, cayenne pepper, and mustard in the saucepan and simmer until the celery root is tender, about 35 to 40 minutes.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat and puree the soup using an immersion blender (or in batches using a blender) until smooth. Stir in the half-and-half and milk. Taste, and re-season the soup if necessary and garnish with the chervil.
• Serve with 3 tablespoons of the sauteed lobster per soup bowl for the meat eaters at the table.
• Using kitchen scissors, cut the lobster shells in half, and firmly open up to butterfly the tails. Gently slice through the lobster meat just enough to open it up. Be careful not to cut all the way through the meat.
• Melt the butter and stir in the seasoning and salt.
• Turn the tails upside down on a broiler pan, and broil for 7 minutes. Flip over and baste with the seasoned butter. Slip back under the broiler for another 4 minutes or until done. Baste again with the season butter.
• The lobster tails can be served as is with additional butter alongside the soup, or gently remove the meat from the shells, coarsely chop, and top each bowl of bisque with the meat of one tail.

LOBSTER BISQUE

Steps:

• Fill large stockpot with water and bring to a boil. There should be enough water to cover lobsters completely when immersed. Place live lobsters in boiling water head first to minimize splashing. When water re-boils, turn down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Do not overcook lobsters. Remove lobsters from the pot using tongs; save all the water in stockpot as this is now a flavorful stock to be re-used.
• Place 10 cups of stock in a clean stockpot and put on low heat. Clean claws and tails of lobsters and reserve meat, legs, and swimmerets. After lobsters are cleaned, place shells in stockpot with 10 cups of stock. Cut bodies in quarters and place in stockpot, making sure to include all roe and tomalley in pot. Add 1 cup tomato paste and simmer on low heat for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Be careful not to have heat so high as to burn stock. Pour entire contents of pot through sieve into clean stockpot; this should now be 8 cups of glorious red stock.
• Place onions, celery, carrots, thyme, parsley and saffron in a large saute pan, add 4 cups stock from original stock pot and put on high heat for 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup tomato paste and black pepper. Turn down heat and simmer 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Press entire contents of saute pan through sieve into stockpot of 8 cups previously made stock.
• To finish Bisque, put pot on medium heat. Add heavy cream slowly, using whisk to blend. Add sherry. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes; bisque will thicken slightly. Mix cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and slowly add to bisque with whisk. Simmer on low heat for another 20 minutes.
• If you prefer your bisque to be thicker, you may add more cornstarch, or perhaps, flour, but have found the bisque thickens nicely over low heat, and additional cornstarch or flour takes away from the wonderful flavor.
• Place pieces of previous cleaned lobster meat in bowl and add 1 cup of bisque. Garnish with legs and swimmerets around the bowl and one parsley leaf in center, if desired.

CELERY ROOT BISQUE WITH THYME CROUTONS

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add celery; cover and cook until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add shallots; sauté uncovered 3 minutes. Stir in celery root cubes and potato, then broth and 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme. Increase heat to high; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 40 minutes. Cool slightly.
• Working in batches, transfer soup to blender and puree until smooth. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cool slightly. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Stir cream into soup and bring to simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with additional chopped thyme and serve.

CELERY ROOT BISQUE WITH THYME CROUTONS

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add celery; cover and cook until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add shallots; sauté uncovered 3 minutes. Stir in celery root cubes and potato, then broth and 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme. Increase heat to high; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 40 minutes. Cool slightly.
• Working in batches, transfer soup to blender and puree until smooth. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cool slightly. Cover and refrigerate.).
• Stir cream into soup and bring to simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with additional chopped thyme and serve.

CELERY BISQUE WITH STILTON TOASTS

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add celery and leeks. Sauté until celery is slightly softened, about 4 minutes. Add potatoes and 4 cups broth. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, uncovered, until all vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes. Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return to same pot. Whisk in 1/3 cup crème fraîche and cayenne pepper. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat before serving, adding more broth to thin if desired.)
• Ladle soup into bowls. Swirl 1 to 2 teaspoons additional crème fraîche into each. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired. Serve with Stilton Toasts.

CELERY-ROOT BISQUE WITH SHIITAKES

Steps:

• Cook celery root, chopped celery, and shallots in 1/2 stick butter in a 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 15 minutes. Add water, salt, and pepper and simmer, uncovered, until vegetables are very tender, about 30 minutes.
• Purée soup in batches in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids), then return to pot.
• Stir in cream and reheat bisque over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Stir in lemon juice.
• While bisque is reheating, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sauté mushrooms with salt and pepper to taste, stirring, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer mushrooms with a slotted spoon to a plate and add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to skillet. Cook butter over moderate heat, swirling skillet, until browned, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a small bowl.
• Serve bisque topped with mushrooms and drizzled with brown butter.

LOBSTER BISQUE WITH ARMAGNAC

Steps:

• Boil water in a large stock pot.
• Twist claws and tails off lobsters and reserve bodies. Add claws and tails to the boiling water. Simmer tails for 3 minutes, and claws until they turn bright red all over, about 8 minutes. Remove lobster pieces as they finish cooking and place in a large bowl. Reserve the cooking liquid.
• Let the lobster cool slightly. Crack claws and remove the meat from the tails and claws, cover and refrigerate.
• Twist legs off the lobster and cut the bodies into large pieces.
• Heat olive oil in a large enameled cast-iron casserole. Add fennel, celery, carrot, onion, leek and garlic and cook over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are browned, about 8 minutes.
• Add legs and body pieces to the casserole and cook over high heat, stirring, until shells start to brown, about 8 minutes.
• Sprinkle flour evenly over the shells and stir well. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until it starts to brown, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in wine and Armagnac and simmer for 3 minutes.
• Stir in thyme, bay leaf, saffron and the reserved lobster cooking liquid until smooth.
• Simmer broth over low heat, skimming occasionally, for about 1 1/2 hours. Strain broth and press on the solids to extract as much liquid as you can. Return broth to the casserole.
• Add heavy cream to the casserole and simmer for 5 minutes. Season the bisque with salt and pepper.
• Cut reserved tail and claw meat into 1" pieces. Add the meat to the simmering bisque and cook until just heated through, about 1 minute.
• Add a splash of Armagnac to 8 soup plates. Ladle the lobster bisque into the soup plates, garnish with the parsley and serve.