Chef James King from Verdea Restaurant Shares his Recipe for Florida Spiny Lobster and Avocado

Jan. 31, 2011 - PRLog -- From  Katherine Lynch editor of Dine South Florica and publisher of Dine Magazine:


Chef James King from Verdea Restaurant Shares his Recipe for Florida Spiny Lobster and Avocado

Is it just me, or has Northern Palm Beach County just entered into a state of deliciousness? Within the past few months, we’ve welcomed some incredible chefs to the area and the foodie inside of me is jumping for joy. ... and now — a new face has wowed me with incredible flavors. His name is James King, and he’s the Executive Chef at Verdea Restaurant located inside the Embassy Suites Hotel on PGA Blvd. Now, don’t let the location throw you off, as I never would have expected to find what I recently discovered there — but surprises make things even better. I’ve just been in for wine and sumptuous hors d’oeuvres like a Diver Scallop a la Plancha with fennel chutney, fennel drape and fennel pollen and Florida Spiny Lobster and Avocado, but trust me on this one, there’s soon going to be a line out the door.

Since I was so obsessed with this lobster dish, James agreed to share his recipe with me. So until you are able to check out this restaurant for yourself, here’s something you can make to impress the most serious of food lovers.

Verdea Restaurant is located at 4350 PGA Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens. 561.691.3130
Check out Verdea online:
http://www.verdearestaurant.com/

FLORIDA SPINY LOBSTER AND AVOCADO (serves 4)

Ingredients:

2 Avocados
2 each 7 oz Florida Lobster Tails, Poached
3 oz Piquillo Peppers, diced
1 bunch cilantro, picked and chopped
1 cup roasted corn
4 T Mayonnaise
2 limes, juiced
1-2 dashes of your favorite hot sauce
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1-2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 each ring mold (3″ wide) or desired shape for plating

Method:

Dice the lobster meat into small bite sized pieces and place in a mixing bowl. Add the peppers, cilantro, roasted corn, mayonnaise and lime juice. Adjust the seasoning with the salt and pepper. Finish with the hot sauce to your liking. Cover with plastic and allow to set in the cooler for at least 15 minutes. This will help the flavors to develop. Cut the avocados in half, remove the skin and take out the seed. Place in a mixing bowl and add some lime juice to keep them from turning brown. Season the avocados with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

On the serving plate, place 2 tbsp of avocado into the bottom of the ring mold. Be sure to push the avocado down to ensure the base will be filled halfway (no gaps). Place 1/4 of the lobster mix on top and push down again. Carefully remove the ring mold and finish with the 3 other plates and finish all salads with an additional drizzle of olive oil.

Enjoy!

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Located next to Embassy Suites Palm Beach Gardens, Verdea Wine Bar is a member of the Farm to Table revolution - focusing on using ingredients that are sourced as locally as possible, offering a healthy, fresh, environmentally-friendly experience.