This recipe was created for Club House for Chefs by: Chef Andrew Lecky in Cambridge, ON.
For Serving: Place a dollop of herb and buttermilk veloute and top with lobster and lamb. Beside the proteins place garden fennel and toasted farro. Garnish with fresh herbs for added flavour.
For the Fennel Puree: In a heavy bottomed saucepot cover sliced fennel with cream, season with salt and cook until tender. Once tender, strain fennel and add to blender. Add cream (1 tbsp) to blender to aid in the blending to a smooth consistency. Add more cream as needed. Once puree is smooth, remove from blender and pass through a fine chinois. Reserve purée in small saucepot until plating.
For the Velouté: In a heavy bottomed saucepot, sweat shallots and garlic until translucent. Season with salt in the early stages to draw out moisture and allow to cook down at a faster rate. Add bay leaves and wine. Increase heat to medium-high and cook wine until au sec. Add in buttermilk and cream. Reduce heat to low simmer. Cook sauce until bay flavour is well incorporated. Strain and season. Reserve for plating.
For the Swede: Cut swede into ½ inch thick pieces and use a medium sized circle cutter to punch out perfect pieces. Starting with cold, seasoned water, gently blanch swede until vegetable becomes slightly tender. Remove from water, pat dry with paper towel. Over low heat, melt down lamb fat and add in swede punch outs. Gently confit in fat until completely tender. Season and reserve for plating.
For the Pine Mushroom: Cut pine mushroom in half and score flesh. Season face with black pepper finely milled. Do not salt. In a heavy bottomed skillet, sear mushrooms until golden brown. Once seared crust has been achieved, then salt. Add cold butter to pan and sauté mushrooms until tender. Season with salt and reserve for plating.
For the Toasted Farro: In a heavy bottomed saucepot, sweat brunoised shallots and garlic until translucent and add farro. Toast farro in pan until well coated and aroma becomes too slowly smell nutty. Add wine, increase to medium heat and cook until au sec. Add water and cook until farro is tender. Add more water as needed. Add in chopped herbs and cook for 2 minutes. Season with lemon and herbs. Reserve until plating.
For the Lamb: Pre-heat pan over high heat and then temper the oil in the pan. Do not allow oil to smoke. Season lamb rack heavily and place loin side down to render down fat. Sear on all sides to create a nice crust and lock in moisture. Remove from heat and allow to rest for 4 minutes. Carve loin off of the rack and place back in the pan. Add butter, crushed garlic and rosemary and baste loin until well coated and it has reached your desired doneness. Allow to rest for 6 minutes.
For the Court Bouillon: Bring all ingredients to just below a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes and allow to cool. Strain.
For the Lobster: Bring court bouillon to a slow rolling boil. Add lobster tails and cook for 4 minutes. Remove and place in seasoned ice bath. Let cool 4 minutes. Once cool, remove from ice bath and remove from shell. Reserve and glaze with butter and lemon before plating.
