The Kitchen Queen’s Lobster, Crab and Tomato Ravioli with a Saffron Cream, Served with Pan-Fried Courgette and Leek Ribbons
(serves 8 as a starter)
enough fresh pasta for 16 large raviolis
2 medium lobster tails
1 tbsp butter
splash olive oil
100 grams white crab meat
2–3 tbsps tomato puree
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
pinch chilli powder
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
100 grams mascarpone cheese
Sauce and Topping
large pinch saffron
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup double cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
4 tomatoes, deseeded and finely chopped
2 courgettes, made into ribbons using a potato peeler
white part of 1 leek, julienned
Bring water to boil in a saucepan and cook the lobster tails until not quite fully cooked, about 4–5 minutes. Let cool and then shell and cut off the very end (about 2 inches) of the tail and set aside. Chop the remainder of the lobster fairly fine and fry in the butter and olive oil until fully cooked. Lift out of the skillet and leave the skillet to one side to fry the courgettes and leek in later.
In a mixing bowl, mix the crab, tomato puree, lemon juice, salt and pepper, chilli powder, thyme and mascarpone, then the cooled lobster. Taste and adjust seasonings. Chill until ready to stuff the pasta. Cut the small ends of lobster tail into eight equal pieces and set aside.
For the sauce, mix the saffron with the chicken stock in a saucepan, then add the cream, 1 clove of garlic, and salt and pepper and simmer high until the sauce reaches a nice thick consistency. Set aside until nearly ready to serve. Make the courgette ribbons and leek julienne and saute them with the remaining clove of garlic in the skillet you used for the lobster.
To serve, boil the ravioli for no more than 3 minutes and place two on each plate. Place the chopped tomatoes in the sauce and heat through, then pour the sauce over the ravioli and top with a little courgette and leek. Finally top each plate with a bit of lobster tail and serve right away.
