The sights, sounds and aromas of the Free Press Food & Wine Experience are still swirling around in my head. And the edibles prepared and presented by many metro Detroit restaurants are tantalizing my taste buds.
Although, I must say, being on stage to introduce domestic diva Martha Stewart as well as celebrity TV chef Graham Elloit was a huge highlight for me.
At the event, there was no shortage of delicious food. The pork belly sliders from Wright & Co. were a favorite; I confess, I ate three. The steak tartare from Prime + Proper served on a toasted baguette slice was cool and crisp. I headed back for seconds of Parc's tuna tartare on homemade chips and Eatoria's mussels in a flavorful broth.
And while the temperatures were in the 80s, the squash soup served with a wild pepper choux bun stuffed with Parmigiano Reggiano mousse was deliciously refreshing.
From one of the cooking stage demonstrations was Grey Ghost chef and co-owner John Vermiglio's lobster and corn bisque. I missed the demo, but sampled the bisque. The bisque was the final food act that sent me home plenty full.
Vermiglio's version of this bisque was ultra-creamy with pieces of tender lobster and bits of corn. There was a subtle hint of spice balanced with some sweetness. For crunch, he added popcorn. While the popcorn wasn't my favorite part, the bisque reminded me of how much I enjoy lobster in just about anything. My nephew, Cameron, once told me he has a separate stomach for dessert. I think I have one for lobster.
Several years ago, after experimenting with several recipes and methods, I came up with my own version of lobster bisque.
One method I settled on for bisque, defined as a thick rich soup typically made with heavy cream, is roasting the seafood shells. Also, I always use saffron.
Once the lobster is cooked, I remove the meat from the shells and let it cool. I take the reserved shells and roast or saute them, extracting even more flavor. After roasting, the shells are simmered in water to create a seafood stock, and used as a base for the bisque. It may seem like a lot of work, but all this can be done in advance.
Plenty of lobster bisque recipes use the whole lobster to yield the claw and tail meats. Today's recipes use only the tails because that's what I typically have tucked away in the freezer.
The spice saffron used often with lobster because the two complement one another. Brace yourself, saffron is known as the world's most expensive spice. But it's highly aromatic and packed with flavor so a little goes a long way.
Saffron comes from Spain and India and is the stigmas from the purple crocus. The flavor of saffron is sometimes described as semi-sweet, which is why it goes well with lobster, and its aroma floral. What makes it so pricey is the stigmas must be handpicked. To make an ounce of saffron, more than 14,000 stigmas need to be picked. Saffron looks like a tangled mess of threads. A small amount goes for about $11, but you'll only need a pinch.
Today's recipe is one from the Free Press archives; I developed it a few years back. You can cook the lobster and make the stock in advance.
