This week marked the official start of summer.  To me, summer means lounging by the lake, campfires, and meals eaten outside.  While I have many great memories of camping, swimming, and general summer shenanigans, I have always wanted to experience the quintessential American summer in the Northeast.

Maine has recently been calling to me.  Not only am I a seafood fanatic, but the forests, the coastline, and the towns look very appealing.  Acadia National Park seems like just the place for a long summer hike.  While I may not be able to enjoy a fresh, caught-that-morning lobster roll, I can try my best to bring Maine to me.

Lobster fishing is a huge industry in Maine.  The first record of catching a lobster in Maine was in 1605 (umaine.edu), but in the early days, lobster was considered a poor man’s food.  Lobster, deemed unfit for consumption for the elite, was often feed to inmates.

The first recorded lobster roll was in 1929 in Connecticut (theculturetrip.com).  While Connecticut may have started it, Maine quickly took over as the home of the lobster roll.  Roadside stands started popping up in the 70’s, and the lobster roll gained world-wide popularity.

We may not get the catch-of-the-day seafood here in Colorado, but we can still piece this together.  Don’t get me wrong, it most likely pales in comparison to the original, but it doesn’t make it any less delicious.  A Maine lobster roll is typically served with potato chips or french fries, but I chose to serve mine with corn on the cob because there is nothing sweeter than summer corn in Colorado.

 

Maine Lobster Roll

(makes 2 sandwiches)

• 2 lobster tails
• 1/8 cup of mayonnaise
• 1 lemon
• 1 celery stalk (optional – I chose not to add this because my husband claims he is allergic)
• 1 bunch of parsley
• Salt and pepper
• 2 brioche hot dog buns
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 2 ears of corn

Heat two pots of water until boiling.  In both pots, generously add salt, and in one pot add half of a lemon.  Once boiling, add the lobster tails to one pot and the two ears of shucked corn into the other.  Cook the lobster tails for 4 minutes, or until the shell turns bright red and the meat is completely white (no translucence left).  Let the corn cook for 5 minutes before removing from the pot.

Once your lobster tails are cooked, you must get the meat out of the shell.  This is tricky!  Stick a knife in the underside of the tail and crack it all the way down the middle.  Once cracked in half, you may pull the sides apart and get to the meat.  Chop the meat of the tails up into bite sized pieces and put into a medium-sized bowl.

In the same bowl, add the mayonnaise, juice from the other half of the lemon, salt, pepper, chopped parsley and celery.  Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes.

Heat butter until melted, and add a pinch of salt.  Split the hotdog bun and hollow out some of the inner bread.  Toast the bun until golden brown.  Drizzle the melted butter on the toasted bun, and then split the lobster mixture between the two buns.  Use the remaining melted butter to drizzle over the corn.

This sandwich tastes just like I imagine a Maine summer to be: light, crisp, slightly tangy, and delicious!