Lobster with Basil Pasta and Mascarpone Sauce

As a dinner entertainer, fresh pasta is your best friend; it's simple to make (as long as you do not let the inexperienced take over; a mistake I have made a few too many times), versatile, fairly inexpensive to make, and really impresses the guests. There's a really fast and less impressive way to make it, which involves machinery and bowls. And, there's the really impressive Italian grandma way to make it: in a pile, with a rolling pin and a knife. I generally opt for the more entertaining way of making it since I prefer the aesthetic of "imperfect" pasta and can't stand the idea of cleaning kitchen machinery (not that I have any).

This recipe consists of three parts: the pasta making, the lobster steaming, and the sauce creation. You can also obviously substitute the home-made pasta with market-bought fresh pasta or a high-quality store-bought pasta; this will eliminate a procedure.

Serves 2:
- 2*1.25 lbs to 1.5 lbs lobsters
- 1.5 cups flour (organic all purpose)
- 2 large whole eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup basil, finely chopped
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup fennel, paper thin
- 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup chives, finely choped
- 3 sprigs of mint, leaves chopped
- 1/4 cup of mascarpone
- 1/3 cup of parmesan, gratted
- spices and salt (ginger, espelette, and pepper)

When making a pasta dish, unless it involves a multiple-hour-cooking sauce, always prepare the pasta first since it needs some time to harden a little bit. Also, here's a little pasta measurement advice: it's generally 1 cup of flour + 1 egg + 1  egg yolk per person. I use a little less because I like to slightly reduce my pasta intake.

Basil Pasta
1. Prepare a large clean surface. (Or a bowl, if you want to stay cleaner.)
2. Make a pile of flour in the center of your surface and indent the center of your pile (so it's like a bowl itself).
3. Put eggs, yolks, basil, salt, and olive oil into the center of the flour pile. Whisk these ingredients with a fork (not the flour).
4. Slowly whisk in the flour until you have a nice consistency. Add slightly more flour if the dough is too wet.
5. Knead the dough into a ball. Make sure not to overwork it as dough hardens when it's tampered with.
6. Roll out the ball with a rolling pin until it is very thin. * Use flour on the rolling pin and all surfaces to avoid breaking the pasta. Let that sit while you prepare the lobster.

Lobster
7. Steam lobsters for 8 to 9 minutes.
8. Remove from heat. Let cool down.
9. Remove the meat from the crustacean and set aside.

At this point, you will go back to the pasta.
10. Roll up the sheet of pasta towards the center. (Like in the picture.)
11. Cut the pasta. Unroll the cut pasta. Let it sit.
12. Prepare a pot of water, at high, with salt and olive oil for the pasta. Cover it.

Sauce
13. In a saucepan at low-med heat, throw in butter.
14. When the butter bubbles, throw in the garlic, the fennel, and the spices. Let it cook for about a minute.
15. Reduce the heat to low. Add in the mascarpone, half of the parmesan, the chive, and the mint. Let the cheeses melt.
16. Throw in the lobster. Cover. Remove off of heat.

The pasta water should be boiling at this point.
14. Throw in the pasta into the boiling water while stirring. Cook for 45 seconds to 1.5 minutes, depending on your preference.
15. Drain immediately and put a tad of butter on the pasta to prevent the single pastas from sticking to each other.

Service
16. On a plate (or on a bowl), first place the pasta. After, sprinkle on the remaining parmesan. On top of that, pour on the sauce and lobster.

Here's a little trick of the trade: parmesan put directly onto pasta, rather than on the sauce, enhances the flavours of the pasta.