When you think of Maine you think of lobster. Shore dinners, lobster bakes, clambakes (which actually center on the lobster), lobster docks and lobster stew. Ubiquitous lobster boats, lobster buoys and lobster pots that weekend sailors spend their afternoons steering around in the summer. So, of course, living in Maine (and before that owning a vacation house here for a number of years) I have personally presided over the conversion of countless bags of "bugs" -- the lobsterman's traditional term -- into platters of steaming pleasure.
I like lobster and I like making my family and friends happy so I'm not complaining, but for a cook, boiling up pots of lobsters is boring -- especially if you have to repeat it for each successive wave of July and August visitors. Usually it's served with more boiled food: corn on the cob, which when it's fresh cannot be ignored any more than can platters of fresh homegrown tomato slices, but from the cook's point of view that's boring too.
Fortunately for me, Jasper White decided to close his trendsetting first restaurant (Jasper's, in Boston's North End) in 1995 to take a break and write Lobster at Home, among other projects. Published in 1998, this book -- though of course it deals with boiled lobster -- opens up a whole new world to the cook whose victims are clamoring for lobster.
While there are many creative and unfamiliar recipes using lobster -- ethnic-influenced, updated signature dishes of other chefs, pastas, etc. -- lot of the book is actually about the many traditional New England lobster dishes that White has spent a good part of his life researching and, since 2000, serving to crowds of happy diners at his Summer Shack restaurants in Boston, Cambridge and at the Mohegan Sun casino: chowders, lobster rolls, baked and stuffed lobsters, thermadored lobster, Newburged lobster, lobster salad.
This seafood stew was adapted from White's "Traditional Lobster Stew" -- but I hasten to add that if you want to make the real Maine lobster stew, follow his recipe to the letter. Mine has been modified to make it friendlier to healthy weight and glucose control -- primarily by reducing the butter amount and using 1-1/2% milk instead of the whole milk he calls for -- and, pretty much just on a whim that hit me when I was at the fish market -- the addition of scallops and clams. I served it with a salad of fresh greens, crusty French bread and a crisp pino grigio. Jasper suggests traditional common crackers, and some might say beer is a better pairing.
Continue reading "Seafood Stew Recipe with Lobster, Scallops and Clams" »









We just moved in and I'm setting up my new kitchen, which will be the subject of a post in the near future. 


In any case, it's a wonderful grain. Somewhat like large barley or wheatberries, it has a pleasing mouthfeel -- firm to the the tooth but at the same time yielding, with no chewiness -- and clearly is a candidate for many different uses, especially since, like rice, barley and pasta, it absorbs and is transformed by flavors from the cooking liquid. In researching the possibilities for future farro forays I've bookmarked many nice alternatives for inspiration (see the links in the last paragraph before the jump).

Alanna instantly identified the newcomers: romano beans -- a broader, flatter bean than the usual variety -- and chiogga beets. The beets were such a bright red that I first thought they were radishes, but when they had been roasted they were a pale translucent pink, slightly redder on the root end. Their taste was earthy and sweet, with a silkier mouthfeel than the deep maroon variety.



Update, and a Side Attraction...
T
his is just a quick note to say thank you to the many readers who've contacted me in the last few weeks to offer support and encouragement to me as I retool Stephencooks to be a resource not only for people who like interesting food prepared at home but also for people with diabetes or pre-diabetes who want to eat well while keeping their weight and glucose levels under control.
It's taken me a bit longer than I expected to make the revisions and add the new features to the site, but it will be rolling along on a regular basis within two six weeks (major overhaul, but I promise it will be worth the wait!).
The side attraction: as some of you know, when I'm not cooking or blogging I'm taking pictures, and over the last nine months I've been working on documenting the constructions shown in the picture above, along the shore of the Back Cove in Portland, Maine. In response to a number of requests, I've just launched a site dedicated to the project so I'd like to invite you to take a quick look at The Portland Cairns Project. Please let me know if you have comments on the project, and pass it on to anyone you know who might enjoy the photographs.
Thanks again for all your support and patience!
.....I've got to get back to the kitchen now.
May 30, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (1)