Italian-American Teen Foodie takes Italy!

Passport & Plate - Lobster Spaghettini, or Lobster Fra Diavolo

USA | Thursday, March 6, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
For the pasta:

2 Whole Eggs
4 Egg Yolks
2 cups 00 Flour

For the Sauce:
4 Lobster Tails
2 35oz cans San Marzanno Crushed Tomatoes
Olive oil
8 garlic cloves
Dried Oregano
Fresh Oregano
Dried Basil
Fresh Basil
Crushed Red Pepper
Black Pepper
Salt
(all herbs and spices measured to taste; I like this sauce to have a lot of heat so I thrown in A LOT of red pepper)
Flour

 

How to prepare this recipe
For the Pasta:

Combine the flour and eggs in a bowl to form a dough.
Knead the dough until it is firm, set aside for 30 minutes.
Pass dough through a pasta press, moving to the next thinnest setting after each pass through.
After the dough has been flattened through the thinnest setting, pass through the perforated side to cut into noodles.
Set noodles aside on parchment paper cover in flour.

For the lobster/sauce:

Cut the lobster tails in half length wise, remove the meat.
Cut each half into 3 smaller pieces, resulting in 6 chunks of meat.
Cut remaining lobster tails.
Dredge all pieces in flour and heat olive oil in a skillet.
Once the oil is heated, very quickly brown the lobster pieces, making sure to only lightly brown and not over cook the meat.
Pat lobster dry with paper towels, set aside.
In a deep pot, heat 1/4 cup olive oil and brown 8 cloves of garlic.
Once browned, add the tomatoes, dried herbs and red pepper.
Bring sauce to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes.
(Optional: turn up your favorite playlist and dance around while waiting for the sauce to simmer; when preparing for the application I turned up the Ramones. Not only is Sheena a Punk Rocker, she also likes to cook)
Add the fresh herbs, lobster and more seasoning/spices (if desired).
Let sauce simmer until ready to serve.

Heat a large pot with water and wait for it to boil (this is another good time for dancing).
Add salt (adding salt after the water boils gives the pasta more flavor than the traditional adding before it boils) and pasta.
When pasta is cooked, drain and return to pot.

Cover cooked pasta with the liquid sauce and mix in the pot.
Fill bowls with pasta and top with lobster pieces and a fresh basil leaf.

ENJOY! :) :)

 

The story behind this recipe
In the heart of Boston's Italian district, the North End, in between brownstones and pastry shops is Neptune Oyster Bar, a small, hole-in-the-wall seafood RESTAURANT. Seating only about 30-40, with white exposed brick, mirrors with the oyster specials scribbled over, white marble tables, and red leather booths, it exudes the warmth of a French bistro. My family and I visit Neptune every year for Christmas Eve to partake in the Feast of 7 Fish, a Neapolitan tradition. We order varieties of oysters, raw clams, tuna, whipped baccala (my favorite!), and lobster to make up our required 7 fish. For years, taunting me on the menu was the Monday special, the Lobster Spaghettini. Finally, a few years ago, Christmas Eve was on a Monday and we got to order it! I loved the sweetness of the lobster and tomatoes, but what struck me the most was the heat coming from the sauce, I did not expect such spices to be in the sauce, and I LOVED it! Almost immediately, I wanted to learn how to make the dish. A few weeks later, I attempted to make it and over the years I have tweaked and perfected the recipe to make it my own and now I have a unique twist on this amazing dish.

To me, this recipe is the epitome of Italian cooking, it is simple, hearty, delicious and aims to highlight the ingredients. It is not about super complex technique; it is about the goodness and freshness of the ingredients. By using the best, most wholesome, delicious ingredients, you will have the best dish. Ultimately, this is what I try to express through my cooking; I want to highlight what the Earth has to offer and make it the best it could be, and share the natural goodness that I enjoy in food with those around me.