Zip Zop Boopity Bop

So with sixty hour workweeks aside, it's finally time to get back on the horse and cook some awesome dinners. My first week sans comped meals three times a day from work was the week of Halloween. UMass serves lobster and steak on Halloween in lieu of donations from alumni Bill Cosby, so I didn't have a problem picking out what to cook.

With my usual taste tester Eleni holding down the fort back home for trick or treaters, I invited Nathalie to come play soux chef. Purchasing the lobster was the first challenge we met. We opted for "chicken lobsters", the smaller of the two kinds sold at Star Market, partly due to the size of our pots and partly due to the fright of killing our own dinner for the first time. The lobsters writhed as they left the tank, but calmed down shortly after once they were placed in the double thick plastic bag. We in turn calmed down at the prospect of not having to deal with temperamental lobsters.

In disbelief that we've gotta kill these guys.

Ready to go home!

Once back home, we immediately placed the lobsters in the freezer, as I read that numbing them was he most humane way to kill them. We then began to prepare the homemade coleslaw and steak. Nathalie marinated the steak in a combo of dressing and other treasures found in the fridge. placing the sauce and steak in the pan together for an enhanced flavor. I cut the cabbage and carrots, and my roommate Hannah contributed some purple cabbage and other ideas for coleslaw ingredients.

STEAK

The timing  of cooking the steak, lobster, and preparing the homemade coleslaw was a challenge I did not expect but welcomed warmly for a first day back on the stove. After placing the steak in the pan, the lobster hot tub was nearly ready to welcome it's first guest. Milton and Gilbert, affectionately named, were removed from the freezer. Nathalie dawned some rubber gloves and hoisted Milton to his final destination. Unfortunately we did not take heat transfer into consideration, so a cold crab + boiling water = not boiling water. Nathalie and I squealed for a solid two minutes as Milton squirmed uncomfortably before passing to lobster heaven. We felt terribly guilty for putting Milton through such torture. Needless to say, we knew what to do when it was time for Gilbert's last swim. 

Before the plunge

  

Touchdown

Delicious doesn't even describe how Gilbert and Milton tasted. Nothing better than freshly killed seafood! The marinated steak, lobster, and coleslaw made for an excellent surf and turf. 

The plate

Ready to eat!

Nathalie and I proceeded to have an awesome Halloween by dancing to Thriller (we learned the dance the previous year during the snowpocalypse) and watching The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown episode. If you had a better Halloween I did, please let me know. 

Lessons learned during this meal: think about heat transfer a bit more next time.

Cost of this meal: about $15 per serving

Til next time little ghouls!!! Muahahaha