You know the types of foodstuffs that tend to accumulate in cupboards that you never seem to eat, want, or need, and are not really sure how they got there? Things like cans of salmon, chopped clams, artichoke hearts, stewed tomatoes, or boxes of jello, pudding, tapioca, bouillon cubes, or those varieties of soup that maybe you bought on sale but aren’t actually that appetizing? Plus the straggler boxes of penne, linguine, spaghetti, or elbows, that all together make just about a pound? How about those frosty little tidbits from the freezer from when the kids were home from college this summer? A handful of crinkle fries, a few deformed looking buffalo wings, and some largely unidentifiable hunks of meat.
As a lifelong “fresh” food consumer, I will occasionally clean out the cupboard. I donate most of the stuff to the library during their “can-do” month which takes collections of food in lieu of fines for overdue books. This semester, however, I have systematically gone shelf by shelf, cupboard by cupboard, and actually eaten through most of the boxes and cans, concocting some pretty weird meals. And it was not because I don’t have any overdue fines, I do (plus having the dubious distinction of being the only library trustee in town history whose library card privileges were suspended for a combination of exorbitant late fees and one very lost book).
No, I ate my way through my cupboards and freezer out of necessity to stave off starvation. But last Tuesday my student loan check arrived and I was ready for a treat. Lobster is on the cheap these days, and after I went to the library I headed down to the waterfront to buy a few feisty crustaceans.
That brings to mind the time I had Harbor Fish Market pack up a crate of lobsters to send to a Texan friend. When he called to thank me, he drawled that he was sorry he couldn’t eat them – they were no good. Apparently they turned green.
This recipe was one of the winners in the state of Maine’s annual lobster recipe contest held at the state house.