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(Yields 8 servings)

Ingredients:

• 4 Lobster tails
• 4 cups of Lobster or Crab Stock (see previous 2 posts)
• 1 large onion (finely chopped)
• 2 carrots (finely chopped)
• 2 Celery stalks (finely chopped)
• 1 Tbsp fresh chopped thyme
• 1 Tbsp fresh chopped tarragon leaves (plus 1 Tbsp chopped tarragon for garnish)
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 2 Tbsp’s tomato paste
• 3 Tbsp’s All purpose flour
• 1 and 1/4 cup dry white wine ( I used Chardonnay)
• 3/4th cup light cream

Putting it together:

1. Fill a small stock pot up with 4 cups of water and a generous amount of salt. When it reaches a boil drop your lobster tails in and cook for 6 minutes.
2. Afterwards, strain your liquid (making sure to reserve it!) and once lobsters have cooled a little take the meat out of their shells (see tips below). Cut the meat into small desired chunks.
3. Heat the butter on medium heat in a medium sized stock pot. Add the mirepoix (onions, carrots, celery) and fresh herbs and cook until veggies soften (about 6 minutes).
4. Stir in the minced garlic, salt and pepper and continue to cook for another two minutes.
5. Mix in the tomato paste until all the veggies are coated, sprinkle your flour on top and continue to cook for another two minutes.
6. Pour in the wine, simmer until the soup is reduced by half. Stir in your stock and cayenne pepper, lower the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes until the liquid has slightly thickened. Make sure that your cream is pre-heated.
7. Take the soup off the heat, VERY CAREFULLY , transfer to a blender and blend the soup until it is completely smooth.
8. Return the soup to low heat, stir in your cream and adjust your seasoning.
9. Add lobster chunks to the center of your serving bowls, ladle the soup into them and garnish with freshly chopped tarragon. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Lobster is a great source of protein, zinc, omega 3 fatty acids, and contains multiple vitamins and minerals. However, it would be wise to eat it sparingly due to higher amounts of sodium and cholesterol compared to other crustaceans.

Tips when cooking: To remove your lobster meat: Place lobster tail on your counter with the back of the tail facing up. Use sharp kitchen shears to cut down through the centre to the end of the tail. With your thumbs and fingers, open the shell to loosen it from the meat, opening the meat away from the shell side walls. Pull the meat up from the bottom of the shell to seperate the shell from the meat underneath it. Other white wines that can be used are Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Viognier, and Semillon. You can use a hand held immersion blender to puree this soup, but pureeing it in a blender (especially a vitamix blender) will give you a much smoother consistency. Other nice garnishes for this soup can be croutons, fennel fronds, creme fraiche , fresh parsley.

Ingredients:

• Shells from 3 Dungeness crab Clusters (will yield about 3-4 cups)
• 2 Tbsp’s vegetable oil
• 1 medium sized white or yellow onion (coarsely chopped)
• 1/4 cup of Brandy
• 3 Tbsp’s Tomato Paste
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 Tsp whole peppercorns
• 3-4 sprigs of Thyme
• 3-4 sprigs of tarragon

Putting it together:

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the crab shells and cook, stirring and pressing until lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes).
2. Stir in your chopped onion, tomato paste, bay leaf and peppercorns and cook until the onion is slightly softened (about 3-4 minutes).
3. Add the Brandy and cook until evaporated. Add 6 cups of water and your tarragon and thyme and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, for about 1 hour.
5. Strain the stock, pressing hard on the solids with a wooden spoon. You can strain the stock a 2nd time through a fine mesh strainer.

Nourishment for your body: Crabs are a great source of protein, omega 3 fatty acids, selenium, vitamin B-12, copper and phosphorus.

Tips when cooking:

After steaming, boiling , grilling or baking the crabs, break the shells using either wooden mallets, a nut-cracker, as well as your forefingers and thumbs. Gently remove the meat. Crab stock can be kept frozen for 2 months. It is a wonderful addition to have in your kitchen to make soups such as bisques and chowders and a number of sauces. If you steam or boil your crabs, you can reserve this cooking liquid to use in place of regular water when making this stock.

How to re-create this recipe:

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

• 1 Cup of water
• 1/2 a cup of Buckwheat/groats
• 5 Candy Cane Beets
• 3 Tbsp Cranberries
• 1/2 a cup of toasted Hazelnuts (toast for 8 minutes in a 300 degree oven)
• Some chopped parsley for garnish

For the dressing:

• 1/2 a cup of Vegetable Oil
• 2 Tbsp’s Lemon Juice
• 2 garlic cloves (finely minced)
• 1 Tbsp Stone Ground Mustard
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tsp Poppy seeds
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Putting it together:

1. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a small stockpot, add some salt, the Buckwheat and simmer for 20 minutes until all water is absorbed. Afterwards, cool to room temperature.
2. Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees, clean your beets well, cut off the beet stems from both sides and then wrap each beet with a small amount of foil paper. Roast the beets for about 40 minutes until they are fully cooked through. The time may vary depending on how big your beets are. After they have cooled a bit, using a small hand towel, remove the skins off them and then cut them into thin slices .
3. While the beets are roasting, you can make your salad dressing. In a small bowl add your mustard, honey, lemon juice , garlic cloves, and poppy seeds. Whisk in the vegetable oil well and add some salt and black pepper.
4. When everything is done being cooked add all your Buckwheat to a medium bowl, half the sliced beets , half the Hazelnuts and half the cranberries. Add only half the salad dressing and toss all ingredients together very gently so your beets don’t tear. Add a little more lemon juice ,salt and black pepper to taste.
5. Place on a nice platter, garnish with the rest of the beets, hazelnuts and cranberries and add your chopped Parsley for garnish. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Buckwheat/ Groats are seeds that are high in protein and fiber. It is also Gluten free. It is known to improve heart health, may prevent diabetes, and is packed with vitamins and minerals. Beets are packed with nutrition! Beets are high in Iron and folate (helps to keep the cells in the body healthy). Beets contain betaines which helps protect  the cells in the body from environmental stress and inflammation. It helps the body process toxins. Betaine also helps to improve stamina by increasing oxygen to the blood which can help with athletic performance.

Tips when cooking: I reserve the other half of this dressing in an air tight container for future use. This dressing is pretty versatile and you can enjoy it on many other salads. This salad was definitely an ode to my Ukrainian roots. Russian people call Buckwheat Kasha and a popular way to have it is as a breakfast food (think porridge). Some people will toast the Buckwheat in a skillet pan (to make them extra fluffy) and then cook it in milk. Buckwheat has strong, nutty notes and is definitely a comfort food to eat in the wintertime. It is very symbolic in Russian culture of reaching a milestone in one’s life, as it is typically the first solid food that is given to toddlers. Other popular ways of having it is tossing it with a beef stew or adding it to a combination of sauteed onions and bowtie pasta.

How to re-create this recipe:

(Serves 6)

Ingredients:

(For the Laksa Paste)

• 1/4th cup of Palm Oil
• 3 dried Thai Red Chiles (re-hydrated in warm water and then stems and seeds removed)
• 4 tsp’s of Fish sauce
• 1 – 2 inch piece of ginger (peeled and finely grated)
• 3 garlic cloves (peeled and rough chopped)
• 6 small shallots (chopped)
• 2 Tbsp’s of Lemongrass stir-in paste puree
• 2 Tsp’s curry powder
• 1 Tbsp ground coriander
• 1 Tsp ground tumeric
• 1 Tsp ground cumin

(for the soup base)

• 3 cups of chicken stock
• 2 – 14 oz cans of coconut milk
• 2 tsp’s of brown sugar
• 2 Persian cucumbers
• 1 cup of Bean sprouts
• 200 grams of extra firm tofu (cubed)
• 20 grams of brown rice Mai Fun noodles (vermicelli)

Yummy toppings:

• 4 hard boiled eggs (halved)
• 1/4th cup of mint leaves.
• Toasted Corn nuts
• Sambal Oelek

Putting it together:

1. Make the paste first by soaking the chilies in warm water for about 30 minutes until softened. While that is soaking you can prep the rest of your Laksa paste ingredients, boil your eggs for 10 minutes and soak your noodles for 8 minutes in hot water (afterwards, drain and set aside).
2. Using a blender, puree all the Laksa paste ingredients (making sure to put in the fish sauce and lemongrass puree first) until you reach a smooth consistency.
3. Heat your oil in a medium saucepot or dutch oven and add the Laksa. Cook the Laksa on medium-high heat for about 2 minutes until the paste slightly darkens and becomes fragrant. Add the chicken stock and simmer for 30 minutes, whisking occasionally. Add the coconut milk and sugar and continue to cook for another 8 minutes or so. Add the tofu and noodles and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
4. When the soup is finished, ladle it into your serving bowls, add your cucumbers and bean sprouts and garnish with eggs, mint, toasted corn nuts and Sambal Oelek. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Tofu is a good source of protein, as it contains all 9 essential amino acids. It is also a good plant source for iron and calcium. Tofu is a good alternative to have in this soup then meat because the coconut milk already contains saturated fat and adding meat to the soup instead of tofu would add more saturated fat then is necessary.

Tips when cooking: Curry Laksa is a soup that originated in Malaysia. This soup is very rich, spicy and deeply fragrant. If you love curry, chances are you will love this soup! I felt fortunate to have gone to college in NYC and my college friends and I would frequently eat at a restaurant called Penang. It was Malaysian and had the most amazing interior design that always made us feel transported to Asia. There was a very large wall in the main dining area with cascading water and lots of jungle greenery all around. It was sort of misty inside with dimmed lighting and our food was always served in clay pots. Making this soup reminded me of Penang. Unfortunately, since those years, the restaurant has closed in it’s SOHO location. This soup would definitely give you a taste of what would have been served there.

It is a good idea to wear gloves while handling the Red Chili peppers. If you don’t have gloves, avoid touching your mouth or eyes and wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water when your done. To peel your ginger, I recommend using the back of a spoon. It is easier then a vegetable peeler to help you peel around and inside some of the crevices.