Whether you’re walking the neighborhood with li’l mister or miss this Halloween or have door answering and candy handling duties, you, my friend, deserve a special “treat” for Halloween, too. This lobster pot pie recipe should do the “trick”… it’s piping hot, decadently savory and filling, can be made mostly in advance and will have you stomach feeling as warm and rich as your heart, as you entertain your favorite ghouls and goblins. Plus, with a little creative plating, you’ll see that this lobster pot pie recipe has all the right colors!
If you do decide to make this in advance, simply stop once the gravy is finished and store until you’re ready to use it. Re-heat to a low simmer and continue with the steps to complete the lobster pot pie. You’ll also note that I added some red shrimp, a sweet shrimp, to this lobster pot pie recipe, as it provides more depth of flavor and texture to the dish at a lower cost than adding more lobster. By all means, feel free to use nuttin’ but lobster if you like!
- 1 cups finely chopped sweet onion
- 1 stalk finely diced celery
- ½ carrot finely diced
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- ½ stick unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 4 cups lobster stock (made from Better than Bouillon or equivalent)
- 1 tbsp brandy or cognac (if available)
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger
- 2 fresh thyme or rosemary sprigs
- 2 pinches saffron (if available)
- 1 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
- kosher salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp sugar or to taste
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 lb raw lobster meat (frozen and thawed ok)
- ¾ lb red shrimp (or the sweetest kind available)
- ¼ cup frozen sweet peas
- 1 package frozen puff pastry
- 1 egg, beaten, for egg wash
- Allow the puff pastry to thaw about 30-40 minutes or according to directions. Preheat oven to 425F.
- Meanwhile, sauté the onions, celery, carrot (mirepoix) and garlic with 2 tbsp butter in a large sauté pan on medium heat until the onions are translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Add add'l butter as it is absorbed or cooked off.
- Add flour, ginger and saffron to make a roux and cook 5 more minutes, stirring constantly. Add the brandy or cognac, and cook another minute, allowing the alcohol to burn off. Add just enough stock to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan while stirring.
- Add in the remaining stock (reserve about ½ cup for thinning gravy if needed), herb sprigs and paprika, bringing to a boil and simmering approximately 5 minutes to thicken. Add ¼ cup heavy cream and continue a low simmer until desired thickness. Adjust cream, sugar, salt and pepper to taste and texture preferences.
- Cut the lobster meat and shrimp into medium, bite sized pieces. Lightly saute them over medium heat in butter with a light sprinkle of salt and pepper. Remove from heat after about a minute or when they start turning color (still translucent and not cooked through - they will cook through in the oven).
- Roll out the puff pastry to enable cutting four tops for the pot pies. Cut the tops slightly larger than the ramekins and slit them all the way through to allow steam to escape while cooking.
- Remove the gravy from heat and add the lobster, shrimp and peas. Ladle the mix into four 10 oz. ramekins, ensuring the meat and peas are distributed evenly. Add pastry tops, use a fork to crimp edges to ramekin and brush them with egg wash.
- Bake at 425 for approximately 20 minutes, or until crust is a golden brown. Enjoy, and Cheers, my friends!
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