Lobster Niçoise Salad

4.5 from 2 ratings

I have to admit, I've never been a fan of the original tuna Niçoise salad. I thought it was boring to make and not very exciting to eat. But then I needed a new and creative idea for lobster, and I needed it to be easy for a dinner party, and alas, lobster Niçoise salad was born. I have to say, it's more enjoyable than I thought.

Servings

servings

Ingredients

5 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, finely diced
1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
3 pound cooked lobster meat, tails and claws, roughly chopped
1 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
1 pound cooked trimmed green beans
three 14-ounce cans quartered artichokes
three 10-ounce package cherry tomatoes
2 heads of butterhead lettuce, leaves removed
two 10-ounce packages niçoise olives
3 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

In a small saute pan over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and cook the shallot until transluscent, about 2 minutes. Add the fresh herbs, stir, and then add the white balsamic vinear and cook until fully reduced, about 5 minutes. Melt the rest of the butter in the pan, swirling it around so that the pan is evenly coated. In a large bowl, combine the lobster meat with the juice from half the lemon, and the butter and herb mixture. Season with salt and pepper, cover, and let marinate for at least two hours.
Place the green beans, cherry tomatoes, and artichoke hearts in three separate bowls. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to each bowl and season wtih salt and pepper. Stir to combine and set aside.
To arrange the salad, lay the leaves of butterhead lettuce evenly on top of a square-shaped serving platter so that the tops of the leaves are facing out. Divide the green beans and arrange them pointing in the same same direction on opposite corners of the platter. Divide the tomatoes and place them next to the green beans. Nestle the artichoke hearts next to either group of vegetables, and then fill in two different spots of the platter with the olives, all the while leaving a space in the middle of the platter for the lobster. Just before plating the lobster, squeeze the other half of the lemon over and stir. Place the losbter in the center, mounding it on top of itself to make it does not overcrowd the border of vegetables.