Lobster Ravioli With Vanilla Butter Sauce Food

LOBSTER RAVIOLI WITH VANILLA BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• Dice the lobster meat (you can use shrimp or scallops for this, or a mixture which is what I do).
• Clean the mushrooms and dice and saute in butter in a large sauce pan.
• Add the shallot and mix in the creme fraiche and quickly bring to a boil.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Add the chives and lobster meat.
• gently blend.
• Simmer for about 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
• Vanilla Butter Sauce----------------.
• Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
• Add the shallots and simmer until soft.
• Add the vinegar and white wine, cook, uncovered at a low boil until the mixture reduces to about 2 Tablespoons.
• Lower the heat to moderate and add a few cubes of butter, remove the pan form the heat and whisk vigorously until the butter is blended inches.
• Continue to add the butter this way-on the heat, off the heat.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.
• Scrape the vanilla bean and whisk it into the sauce.
• Strain the sauce into a clean saucepan, using pressure with a wooden spoon to make sure that as much of the vanilla and shallots goes through as possible.
• Putting it together--------------------.
• Roll out your pasta dough by machine or hand and lay flat.
• It should be about 5 inches across.
• Place about 1/2 T of lobster mixture, 4 to a row.
• Repeat and top with a fresh sheet of dough.
• Press down with hands and cut into squares.
• Crimp with a fork.
• Repeat.
• You can use won ton wrappers if you prefer.
• Put ravioli into a boiling pot of salted water-they cook very fast.
• When they float to the surface they are done.
• Remove, drain and place in a serving dish, topped with the sauce.
• By the way, I double the sauce!

BASIC RAVIOLI WITH A BUTTER-SAGE SAUCE

Steps:

• For the filling: Add the ricotta, Parmigiano and eggs and sprinkle with salt in a bowl. Adjust seasoning if needed. Put the filling in a pastry bag and reserve.
• For the pasta: Set the pasta roller on the widest setting (#1). Start with half the pasta dough; keep the other half covered until ready to use. Using your hands, flatten the dough as much as you can to facilitate it going through the pasta roller. Run the dough through the roller, twice dusting it in between rolls if it feels sticky. Fold the dough into thirds and turn it 90 degrees (a quarter turn) and run it through the pasta machine 2 to 3 times. Move the roller to the next setting (#2) and run the pasta through. Dust lightly with flour if the dough feels sticky. Continue to run the dough through the machine reducing the opening (or moving the setting to the next larger number) in between every roll. Stop when you get to the correct thinness, this will usually be around number 5 or 6 on the dial, but every machine is different, you will have to be the judge of your own pasta thickness.
• To assemble the ravioli: Lay out the dough on a flat surface. Brush the lower half of the dough (the part that is closest to you) lightly with water. This is the glue that will hold the ravioli together. Use the glue sparingly, if you use too much the pasta will slide and not stick. Pipe 1-inch balls of filling onto the pasta that has been brushed with water, leaving about 2 inches between each ball. Fold the top half of the pasta down over the filling to meet the bottom edge. Using your index fingers, poke around each filling ball to seal the ravioli shut, AND to make sure that there are no air bubbles. Using a fluted round cutter or a fluted pastry wheel or even a drinking glass, cut out each ravioli. Transfer to a sheet tray dusted with semolina or polenta and reserve until ready to use.
• To cook the ravioli and make the sauce: Add the butter to a large saute pan and bring to a medium heat. Add 1 cup of chicken stock and season with salt. Shake the pan to incorporate the butter and stock, and simmer until the stock has reduced a bit and the sauce looks velvety and is the consistency of heavy cream. If the sauce thickens too much, adjust the consistency with chicken stock. Add the sage and season with salt.
• Add the ravioli to the pot of boiling water and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully remove the ravioli from the cooking water and put them immediately into the sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil, shaking frequently to be sure that the ravioli don'(TM)t stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Transfer the ravioli to a serving platter. Mangia Bene!
• Put the flour on a clean, dry work surface. Make a hole (this is also called a well) in the center of the flour pile that is about 8 inches wide (bigger is definitely better here). Crack all of the eggs and the yolk into the hole and add the olive oil, salt and water.
• Using a fork, beat the eggs together with the olive oil, salt and water. Using the fork, begin to incorporate the flour into the egg mixture; be careful not to break the sides of the well or the egg mixture will run all over your board and you will have a big mess! Also, don't worry about the lumps. When enough flour has been incorporated into the egg mixture that it will not run all over the place when the sides of the well are broken, begin to use your hands to really get everything well combined. If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands and begin kneading with wet hands. When the mixture has really come together to a homogeneous mixture, THEN you can start kneading.
• When kneading it is VERY important to put your body weight into it, get on top of the dough to really stretch it and not tear the dough. Using the heels of your palms, roll the dough to create a very smooooooth, supple dough. When done, the dough should look VERY smooth and feel almost velvety. Kneading will usually take from 8 to 10 minutes for an experienced kneader and 10 to 15 for an inexperienced kneader. Put your body weight into it, you need to knead! This is where the perfect, toothsome texture of your pasta is formed. Get in there and have fun!
• When the pasta has been kneaded to the perfect consistency, wrap it in plastic and let rest for at least 1 hour. If using immediately do not refrigerate.
• Roll and cut the pasta into desired shape. How smooth and supple!

BUTTER POACHED LOBSTER RAVIOLI

Steps:

• For the Pasta Dough: Put the first 2 ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix briefly. Make a well in the flour and add eggs into it. Mix the eggs into the flour and knead the mixture with your hands until smooth. Add water only as needed to reach desired consistency. Avoid adding more than necessary. Flatten dough slightly and cover with plastic. Chill dough in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
• For the Lobster Filling: Drop the lobsters in boiling water for no more than 45 seconds to a minute. Separate the tail, body, and claws. Split the tail and remove the meat. Crack the claws and knuckles open and remove their meat - setting aside the meat from the larger claw and its knuckles.
• Smash the shells (including the body) with a cleaver or meat mallet. Covering the shells with a kitchen towel first helps avoid making a mess. Heat the clarified butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium/high heat. Add the lobster shells, celery, carrots, and onions. Cook until the mixture caramelizes. This may take up to a half hour. Keep the heat on medium to high. Use a wooden spoon to scrape the brown residue from the bottom of the pot. Add the water (should be enough to cover the contents of the pot. If not add more) and simmer for about 45 minutes.
• While this lobster stock is cooking, cut 8 ounces butter into small cubes. Place them in a small saucepan and add 1 tablespoon of water. Heat the butter slowly - whisking it with the water until fully melted. Add the lobster tail meat and the claw and knuckle meat from the smaller claw. Cook the meat in the butter over low heat for a total of about 5 minutes. Check the claw and knuckle meat after about 3 minutes. When cooked, remove the meat from the butter and set aside to cool slightly. Cut the tail and knuckle meat into small cubes. The claw meat will break up in your fingers.
• Returning to the lobster stock, strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve - saving the stock and discarding the rest. Pour the stock into a clean saucepot, return to the stove and bring to a boil. Continue at a rolling boil until it has reduced down to about a quart of liquid. Remove half of the liquid and set it aside.
• Add the white wine and reduce again - this time down as much as possible. When fully reduced, the bubbles from boiling will be much tighter. There may be as little as a tablespoon of liquid left. Reduce the heat to low and whisk in the 1-ounce of butter. Set this wine reduction aside.
• In a food processor puree the claw and knuckle meat from the larger claw (that you set aside earlier) until it is a smooth paste. Fold the poached lobster meat and about a tablespoon of the wine reduction into the pureed meat. Add a pinch of sea salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate filling until ready to use.
• For the Vanilla Bourbon Sauce: Combine the lobster stock set aside from the filling, the bourbon, vanilla bean, and thyme in a saucepot and bring to a rolling boil. When the mixture has reduced by about half remove the thyme and discard. Remove the vanilla bean and set aside. Continue reducing the liquid until it thickens. Reduce heat to low. Split the vanilla bean and scrape its seeds. Add the seeds to the sauce and discard the pod. Cube up the butter and whisk it, bit by bit, into the sauce to finish it. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• For the Celeriac Puree: Place the diced celeriac in a medium saucepot and pour the cream over it. Cut a disk out of parchment paper just big enough to cover the celeriac (the inner diameter of the pot). Using this to cover the mixture instead of a pot lid will help prevent boil-over. Cook the mixture on low heat for 45 minutes or until celeriac is very tender. Remove paper and strain the mixture - reserving both the celeriac and the cream. In a food processor puree the celeriac. Add just enough cream to make a smooth puree. Season with salt and pepper.
• For the Chanterelle Mushroom Ragout: Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the onion. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for about 15 minutes and then add the fennel. When this mixture has caramelized (may take about 15 minutes) add the chanterelles and the herbs. Add the wine and cook until it reduces by two thirds. Swirl in the butter and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• For the Ravioli: Roll the pasta dough out into sheets using a pasta roller. Brush 1 sheet at a time lightly with egg wash. Spoon small mounds of filling (about 1 teaspoon each) onto 1 side of the dough - about 1-inch apart. Fold the dough over the filling and press it together just around the filling - working outward. Cut the ravioli with a pasta wheel or with a ring mold. If making a large batch, freeze the ravioli. This will make cooking them much easier. If not, cover and refrigerate until needed. Just before service, cook the ravioli in a large pot of salted boiling water for about 4 minutes.
• To plate: Pipe 3 small mounds of the celeriac puree in a row in the center of the plate. Gently set 1 ravioli on each mound - slanted upward. Spoon some of the mushroom ragout around the side of the ravioli and drizzle sauce on the plate. If edible flowers or fresh herb sprigs are available they can be used as a garnish.