Fennel Potato Soup With Lobster Medallions, Blood Orange Sauce |
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Prep Time: 30 Minutes Cook Time: 60 Minutes |
Ready In: 90 Minutes Servings: 1 |
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Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard is a soup genius; this is yet another recipe I could not lose. Her description: Ever since I worked for Shawn McClain at Spring restaurant in Chicago, I have loved fennel. Shawn used it a lot more than other chefs I had worked for and I could see why. It has a beautiful, soft and subtle anise flavor that really shines in this soup. The richness of the lobster and the tart orange really bring it all together. Ingredients:
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil |
1 small onion, diced small |
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced |
2 fennel bulbs, thinly sliced (reserve some fronds for garnish) |
2 yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks |
1/4 cup dry white wine |
2 tablespoons pernod |
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt |
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper |
4 cups vegetable stock |
1/2 cup heavy cream |
1 small lobster tail |
1/4 cup unsalted butter |
1/2 lemon, juice of |
2 blood oranges, juice of (reserve two segments for garnish) |
1/2 lemon, juice of |
2 tablespoons honey |
Directions:
1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or medium soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sweat them for 3 minutes. Add the fennel and sweat 5 minutes, until it begins to get tender. Add the potatoes, wine and Pernod and simmer to reduce the liquid until it is nearly gone. Season with salt and pepper. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a boil, and then reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, put the cream in a small heavy-bottomed saucepot over medium heat. Simmer to reduce until it has thickened and has rich nutty flavor. Set aside.
3. While the soup simmers, prepare the Blood Orange Reduction. Whisk together the blood orange juice, lemon juice and honey in small non-reactive saucepot. Simmer over medium heat to reduce to a syrup, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Transfer soup in batches to a blender and process until smooth (or use a stick blender in the pot). Pass each batch through a mesh sieve, pushing it through with a rubber spatula. Discard solids. Return the soup to the saucepot over medium heat. Whisk in the reduced cream and adjust seasoning to taste. Keep the soup warm while preparing the lobster.
5. Bring a medium saucepot of salted water to a boil. Add the lobster tail and boil for 2 minutes, just enough to be able to remove the meat from shell, not to cook through. Put the tail in an ice bath to stop cooking. Remove the meat from the shell and cut the tail in half, rinsing if necessary. Slice the lobster into bite size pieces.
6. Melt the butter in the saucepot. Whisk in the lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add the lobster pieces and poach over low heat until just cooked through, about 2 minutes.
7. Ladle hot soup into bowls. Add poached lobster pieces to each serving. Drizzle the soup with blood orange reduction and garnish with orange segments and fennel fronds.
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