Lobster Sandwich

Lobsters are very popular in New England states and they are always part of the summer experience. My girlfriend was so gracious enough to bring us two big pieces of live lobsters from Maine. It's our first time to cook live ones, we usually just eat them in restaurants, but we didn't do bad. I googled the way to cook it and hb made them into lobster salad. It was so delicious!

BOILING LOBSTER*

1. In order to boil your lobster, you will need a large pot with a lid.
2. Pour enough water in the pot to cover the lobster completely.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of sea salt for every 2 liters (4 pints) of water.
4. Bring the water to a fierce boil.
5. Grasp the live lobster behind the claws and drop it headfirst into the boiling water.
6. Cover the pot and once the water has started to boil again, start timing.
7. Boil the lobster for 10 minutes for the first lb of weight and then 3 more minutes for each extra pound. A two lb lobster will be done in 13 minutes, a 3 lb lobster in 16 minutes.
8. Once cooked, drain the lobster immediately and serve hot.

Alternate way of cooking lobster is by steaming, and here's how:

STEAMING LOBSTER*

You will require a longer cooking time to steam your lobster, however, many people say that the result is even better than boiling, giving you a succulent and tasty lobster meat.

1. Place a steaming rack to hold the lobster in the bottom of a large pot.
2. Pour 2 inches of water into the pot and add 1 tablespoon of sea salt.
3. Cover the pot with the lid and bring the water to the boil.
4. Once the water is boiling fiercely, place the lobster onto the rack, cover the pot and bring back to the boil.
5. Begin timing once the water is boiling again.
6. Steam the lobster for 14 minutes for the first lb of weight and then an extra 3 minutes for each extra lb. A 2 lb lobster will cook in 17 minutes, a 3 lb in 20 minutes.
7. Once the lobster is done, drain immediately and serve

LOBSTER SANDWICH

INGREDIENTS
1/2 lb fully cooked lobster meat
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
Celery, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
2 small scallions, thinly sliced
Wheat bread

DIRECTIONS:
1. Just combine the first five ingredients,
2. Chill until ready to use
3. Fill the bread with the mixture and serve.

*Source: helpwithcooking.com

Food Friday - Fried Shrimps with Cashew

This recipe is from my Wok & Oriental cookbook and one of the favorite dishes I cook when I have tons of veggies in the fridge. It originally calls for orange bell pepper, leeks and broccoli florets veggies but whatever veggies you have in the fridge is really fine, the important ingredient here is the sauce. In this dish I threw in sugar snaps, mushrooms, yellow and red bell pepper, and onions.

FRIED SHRIMPS WITH CASHEW

INGREDIENTS
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp cornstarch
pinch of superfine sugar
1 lb raw jumbo shrimps
4 tbsps vegetable oil
1 small onion, diced
1/2 medium size yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 medium size red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 cup baby portabella mushrooms, quartered
4 ounces sugar snaps
3/4 cup unsalted cashew nuts
SAUCE
3/4 cup fish stock (I used chicken stock)
1 tbsp cornstarch
dash of chili sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine

DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix together the garlic, cornstarch, and sugar in a large bowl. Peel and devein the jumbo shrimps. Stir the shrimp into the cornstarch mixute to coat thoroughly.
2. Heat the oil in pre-heated wok and add the shrimp mixture. Stir fry over a high heat for 20-30 seconds, until the shrimps turn pink. Remove the shrimps from the wok with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels, and set aside.
3. Add the onions and mushrooms to the wok and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the bell pepper and sugar snap and stir fry for another 2 minutes.
4. Mix together the ingredients for the sauce and add the mixture to the wok, together with the cashews. Return the shrimps to the wok and cook, stirring frequently for 1 minute to heat through completely. Transfer to a warm dish and serve immediately.

VARIATIONS:
This recipe also works well with chicken, pork or beef strips instead of shrimps. Use 8 ounces of meat instead of 1 lb of shrimps.

Food Friday - Mini Banana Muffins

I always buy banana and I slice some in my cereals every morning. But when I bought too much I always end up with overripe ones that I just make into banana bread or muffins. This one is a recipe for banana bread that I poured into mini muffin tray, I just shorten the baking time to avoid burning them up. This is one of my toddler's favorite afternoon snacks.

MINI BANANA MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 deg. F (175 deg. C). Lightly grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan or a 24 hole mini muffin tray.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan or muffin tray
3. Bake in preheated oven to 60 to 65 minutes (in loaf pan) or 25 to 30 minutes (in mini muffin tray), until a tootpick inserted into center of the bread/muffin comes out clean. Let bread/muffin cool in a pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.