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CHAUSSON OF LOBSTER À L’AMÉRICAINE

1 pound puff paste

Lobster à l’Américaine (see preceding recipe)

Beaten egg

Heavy cream

Butter

Chopped parsley

A chausson is a large turnover made of puff paste. Use your favorite recipe for the paste and chill it for 2 hours. Then roll it out in a circle about 1/3 inch thick. Spread the center with lobster à l’Américaine (without the shells) and save some of the sauce. Now, fold one part of the circle two-thirds of the way over the lobster mixture. Take the other end of the pastry and pull that over the first fold. Now you should have two thicknesses of pastry over the center part. Seal the edges with a little cold water, brush the pastry well with beaten egg, and put it in a 450° oven. Bake for 10 minutes and reduce the heat to 350°. Continue baking until the pastry is cooked — about 30 to 35 minutes.

Serve the chausson in slices with the remaining sauce, which you have heated with a little heavy cream and a good pat of butter. Garnish with chopped parsley.

LOBSTER OMELET

Sauté lobster meat lightly in butter with a little chopped onion and parsley. Fold the mixture into individual omelets and garnish with broiled mushroom caps.

LOBSTER FRA DIAVOLO

This is the Italian version of lobster à l’Américaine. In fact, it might even be the original. The following recipe will serve two people.

2 lobsters (1 to 11/2 pounds each)

6 tablespoons olive oil

4 sprigs of parsley

1 teaspoon thyme or oregano

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Pinch of cloves

Pinch of mace

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 cups cooked tomatoes

1/4 cup brandy

Split the live lobsters and cook them in hot olive oil until the color has turned. Continue cooking gently for about 10 minutes. Add the seasonings, herbs, and tomatoes. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring often. Arrange a ring of rice on a serving dish. Put the lobster halves in the center and pour the sauce over them. Add the brandy and blaze just before serving.

CIVET OF LOBSTER

This is really still another version of lobster à l’Américaine.

1 lobster (about 2 pounds)

2 tablespoons butter

2 medium onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

4 or 5 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon tarragon

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup white wine

1/4 cup cognac or whiskey

Liver and intestines of the lobster

Cut the lobster in small pieces as for lobster à l’Américaine. Remove the claws. Reserve the liver and intestines. Butter a shallow skillet or saucepan. Put the onions, garlic, and tomatoes with the herbs in the saucepan. Place the pieces of lobster on this bed of vegetables, salt and pepper to taste, and brush well with olive oil. Add the wine and cognac, cover, and bring to a boil. Let it boil vigorously for about 2 minutes. Remove the pieces of lobster to a hot platter. Add the liver, intestines, liquid, and a little more parsley to the saucepan and let it cook down for a few minutes. Taste for seasoning and pour the sauce over the pieces of lobster. Serve with rice.

LOBSTER FRANCO-AMERICAN

This, too, is a version of lobster à l’Américaine.

2 lobsters (about 2 pounds each)

1/3 cup olive oil

2 medium onions, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 cup tomato sauce

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cognac

2 tablespoons meat glaze

1/3 cup sherry or Madeira

2 tablespoons chopped pimiento

Plunge the lobsters into boiling water for 1 minute to kill them. Cut them in half, and save the liquid and liver and intestines. Put the olive oil in a large ovenproof pan and heat over a flame. Add the onions, garlic, and lobster halves and season to taste. Add the tomato sauce and let it cook with the other ingredients for 4 minutes. Pour 1/4 cup of the cognac into the pan, cover it, and place it in a 400° oven for approximately 18 minutes. Remove the lobsters to a hot platter and keep warm.