Alison Lohman's Carrot and Star Anise Soup

Celebs' Favorite Holiday Dishes

Patrick Dempsey
Patrick Dempsey stars as the romantic lead in Disney’s new holiday comedy, Enchanted.  Best known for playing Dr. Derek Shephard (aka "Dr. McDreamy") in TV’s Grey’s Anatomy, Dempsey started his movie career in the late 1980s, with memorable roles including a nerdy teenager in Can’t Buy Me Love, "The Woo Woo Kid" in the cult film In the Mood and young Meyer Lansky in Mobsters.

Dempsey likes to return his hometown, Lewiston, Maine for the holidays. As he told Fandango during the Enchanted press junket, "Lobster’s always great, especially when we’re back home in Maine, and I love cooking, when I have the time..." This recipe, created by Diane Brown, author of The Seduction Cookbook, captures the spirit of New England, but with an interesting twist --  making for a festive, entertaining dish for the holidays.

Maine Lobster Paella (Serves 6-8)

Ingredients

Maine Lobster
  • 3 8-ounce bottles clam juice
  • 1 1 1/4-pound live Maine lobster
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion
  • 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 8 chicken legs or thighs, skin on
  • 1 1 lb chorizo or linguica sausage, casing removed
  • 1 cup white wine
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon saffron thread
  • Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
  • 2 cups white rice
  • 2 cups lobster/clam broth (retained from lobster poaching)
  • 1 can whole tomatoes and juice
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen peas
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Directions

  1. Bring clam juice to boil in large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add lobster. Cover; boil until lobster is red, about 4 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
  2. Using tongs, transfer lobster to rimmed baking sheet; reserve lobster broth in pot. Cool lobster 15 minutes.
  3. Twist tail off body. Cut tail in half lengthwise; remove meat. Twist off claws. Split claw shells with cleaver and remove meat. Cut meat into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces.
  4. Strain juices from sheet into 4-cup measuring cup and add to broth in pot. If necessary, add enough water to measure 2 cups broth mixture.
  5. In an extra-large skillet, paella pan or wok, heat oil to a light sizzle over medium heat on the stove top.
  6. Add onion and garlic, stirring to ensure it does not burn, for about 2 minutes.
  7. Add red pepper and chicken thighs or legs, browning them to slightly crisp the skin.
  8. Add sausage and brown without stirring for about 3-4 minutes.
  9. Add white wine to the pan around the edges, and stir all of the ingredients to deglaze the pan and distribute garlic and onions throughout.
  10. Add parsley, bay leaves, saffron, and salt and pepper, stirring once again, and allow ingredients to simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes undisturbed.
  11. Add rice, lobster/clam broth, and tomatoes with juices to the pan, stirring once again.
  12. Cover the pan and reduce heat to the lowest setting, cooking the paella undisturbed for approximately 45 minutes or when rice becomes "al dente." If rice is not tender after 45 minutes, add 1/3 cup additional clam broth and continue cooking.
  13. Increase heat to medium-low and remove lid from pan.
  14. Stir in the lobster and peas, replace lid and steam for about 4 minutes, until lobster is heated through.
  15. Give the entire dish one last stir, garnish with parsley and serve.

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