These hors d'œuvres and to be honest the simple version as well, were inspired by the traditional colours of Christmas.For those of us that like a colour coordinated Christmas, the red of the tomatoes against the green of the basil makes them the perfect festive nibble.The making and reducing of the tomato water takes time, but for the most part it just requires waiting rather than active participation. That being said, you will need to keep an eye on the tomato water when it starts to thicken, or else you will end up with a ruined pan.The reduction can be also be done the day before and kept covered in the refrigerator.
Lobster Bruschetta
Lobster Bruschetta
Makes about 20
Ingredients
1 cup of tomato deseeded and chopped (I like to use the sweet cocktail tomatoes for the bruschetta mix and to get a cup I need around five) 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 clove garlic, crushed 10 oz raw lobster meat chopped ¼ teaspoon olive oil ¼ cup red onion, very finely chopped 1 tablespoon low fat cream cheese 1 tablespoon reduced tomato water 2 teaspoons basil, finely chopped 20 endive lettuce leaves
Method
In a non stick fry pan sauté the garlic until just cooked through, do not allow the garlic to burn or it will be bitter.Add the lobster and cook until just done, this should only take a couple of minutes.Remove from the heat and cool slightly.In a mixing bowl, combine the tomato, reduced tomato water, onion, cheese and the cooled lobster.At this point you will need to taste the mix, sometimes tomatoes need a little sugar, but taste them first, season with salt and pepper (this can be done in advance and refrigerated for up to three hours).Add the basil and mix well.Spoon teaspoonfuls of the shrimp mixture into the lettuce leaves and serve immediately.
Reduced tomato water
Ingredients
6 large roma tomatoes 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 teaspoon sugar ¼ teaspoon salt
Method
In a food processor, blend the 6 roma tomatoes, salt and garlic into a puree.Line a strainer with cheesecloth (or you can actually use paper towel) and place the strainer over a bowl.Put the pureed tomatoes in the strained and leave overnight.Put the tomato water and the sugar in a small sauce pan and reduce over a low heat until you have about 1 tablespoon (don’t throw out the tomato puree, it freezes well and you can use it in pasta sauce or stews).
