Make With Me

With Christmas days away, I've decided that this weeks entries will have a 'Christmas' theme. 

Mary's Lobster Coquille

Ingredients:

• 4 or 5 lobster tails (1 lb)
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup mushrooms sliced
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 can cream of shrimp soup
• 1/3 cup of table cream
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup old cheddar cheese
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

To make:

• Cook and cut lobster
• Saute onions, garlic, celery and mushrooms until tender but not brown
• Stir in soup
• Gradually blend in cream, sherry, parsley and crumbs
• Add lobster
• Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly
• Spoon into baking shells or individual casseroles
• Combine 1/4 cup soft bread crumbs and 1/4 cup shredded old cheddar cheese and sprinkle over mixture
• Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes
• Garnish with parsley
• Enjoy!

Notes:

1. This recipe is my great-aunt Mary's and is served every year on Christmas Eve, making it a family classic and family tradition.
2. Instead of lobster, you can use crab or shrimp. You could also use all three and make a seafood lover coquille.
3. For non- seafood lovers (ahem, myself) chicken can be used in place of lobster/crab/shrimp.
4. If you can't find cream of shrimp soup (or if using chicken in place of seafood), you can use cream of mushroom.
5. I don't have baking shells or individual casserole dishes, so I just bake in a regular casserole dish.
6. I also don't like mushrooms, so I don't use them in the recipe.