Breakfast time. He was hungry. The would-be ingredients were sitting right there.

Three eggs. Slices of white American cheese. Chilled lobster meat from the night before.

Crack. Sizzle. Fold.

Mmm.

“It was delicious. I wondered why it wasn’t offered on menus,” said Alex “Sonny” Cote.

Jan Barrett had a fancy dinner to plan for six. She wanted lobster, but not as the headliner.

Voila!

Jan’s Lobster Florentine Stuffed Chicken.

“I make up my own recipes 99 percent of the time,” she said. “I have this adage, ‘If it smells good together, it’s going to taste good together.’ If you sat there and took your time savoring it, it was like a well-rounded, kind of delightful flavor.”

We’re in the heart of lobster-eating season and soft shell prices have taken a nosedive. That’s not so great for fishermen, but ideal for cooks like Cote and Barrett with a little kitchen courage.

Think lobster omelet. Lobster lasagna. Lobster cheesecake.

“We’ve got some breakfast dishes people don’t think about — lobster eggs Benedict — and then there’s lobster mashed potatoes, sides that people won’t normally think about. It’s always the center of the plate,” said Marianne LaCroix, marketing director at the Maine Lobster Council, repository of the world’s largest collection of lobster recipes.

New Englanders tend to be traditional, she said: Boil, butter, bib, bon appetit.

“The farther you get out of New England, I think people are less enamored with a traditional lobster bake-style. That’s why some of the new products that are on the market are so great,” said LaCroix. “They can buy lobster meat, lobster tails. They can buy scored claws that they can use for cocktails.”

It’s less muss, less fuss, and that’s opened up eater-ship.

“Instead of a shrimp on a drink, you might have a lobster claw,” she said. “Or lobster claw cocktail instead of shrimp cocktail.”

Gov. Paul LePage this week declared August “Maine Lobster Month.” In Maine, it’s a $330 million industry, and the catch each of the last three years has been record-breaking, LaCroix said. In 2011, lobstermen and women caught more than 100 million pounds here.

Prices have been down with more soft shell landings (soft shells don’t travel as well as hard shells, so they’re often eaten or processed locally, she said). A rule of thumb when it comes to cooking: a 1 pound lobster will yield about 3 to 4 ounces of meat.

Barrett, innkeeper at the former Ware Street Inn in Lewiston, paired 1.5 pounds of lobster meat with 12 chicken breasts for her dish.

When it comes to culinary experimenting, “just trust your senses,” she said.

Cote, an Auburn native, is a master Maine guide, personal chef and owner of Lakeside Lodge in Sinclair, up in Aroostook County. He made his original lobster omelet for himself. He’s since done it for guests, sometimes spooning warmed lobster Newburg sauce from the night before on top.

Cote also likes grilled lobster. Fair warning: It’s more hands-on than dropping them in a boiling pot of water.

His suggestion: lay the live lobster on its back, pierce the shell by its throat with a chef’s knife and cut the length of the body cavity down the middle, without cutting all the way thorough to the back of the shell. Lay it belly-side down on the grill, flip in 4 to 5 minutes. It’s done when the shell is red and the meat easily detaches.

“You wrap the paws all the way, including the knuckles, in aluminium foil (or) they will over-cook,” Cote said. “It picks up a bit of smokiness. It’s very similar to the real Down East clambakes when they’ve got a fire going underneath.”

kskelton@sunjournal.com

Hancock Gourmet’s Maine Lobster Dip

16 ounces cream cheese

2 cups cooked Maine lobster meat

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

1 tablespoon horseradish

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (add more to taste)

1/4 cup chopped blanched almonds

1/4 cup sliced almonds (with skin)

Directions:

Using food processor, lightly chop the blanched almonds.

Using same processor, lightly chop onion.

Place onions in a large bowl and add the horseradish, Worcestershire sauce and hot pepper sauce and mix together. Add cream cheese and continue mixing together.

Chop Maine lobster meat into small pieces. Fold the lobster and chopped almonds into the cream cheese mixture. Top with the sliced almonds

The dip may be served cold as is, or warm. To serve warm, place dip in an oven-proof dish and put in a 375 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes until it starts to bubble. Remove from oven, let sit for 5 to 7 minutes. It’s best served warm, not hot, with crackers or crusty bread.

This dip is also excellent for a bagel spread or bruschetta.

Source: Hancock Gourmet Lobster Co., Topsham, and the Maine Lobster Council

Maine Lobster Mashed Potatoes

8 ounces frozen uncooked Maine lobster tails, thawed

1/3 cup whole milk

2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

1 pound russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 2-inch pieces

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Salt and pepper

Directions:

Cook the Maine lobster tails in large saucepan of boiling, salted water until just opaque in center, about 7 minutes.

Using tongs, transfer lobster to work surface and cool slightly (reserve water in pan). Remove meat from shell, cut into small pieces.

Bring 1/3 cup milk to simmer in a medium saucepan. Add Maine lobster meat and tarragon; cover and set aside.

Return reserved water in pan to boil. Add potatoes and boil until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.

Drain potatoes; return to pan and mash.

Add butter and Maine lobster mixture to mashed potatoes and stir until butter melts. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Source: Epicurious.com and the Maine Lobster Council

Jan’s Lobster Florentine Stuffed Chicken

12 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1.5 pounds fresh, clear lobster meat

Large package fresh baby spinach

3 to 4 large shallots

2 ounces cooking sherry

Extra virgin olive oil

Cooking spray (canola oil)

Dried herb mixture of choice

Pre-packaged Mornay sauce

Directions:

Cut up lobster meat into small chunks, set aside. Saute small diced shallots in the olive oil until starting to be a bit transparent. Add baby spinach to pan and saute with shallots until wilted. Add lobster and sherry (to taste) to mixture, cover and refrigerate.

Pound chicken breasts to allow for an easy roll and tuck when stuffing with lobster mixture.

Spray glass baking pans with canola oil. Stuff each breast with a small handful of lobster mixture; roll and place in pans tucked side down. Repeat for each breast.

Spray each breast lightly with canola oil and dust with dried herbs. Bake in 350-degree oven until done (45 minutes, give or take, depending on thickness).

Prepare packaged Mornay sauce as directed and serve over stuffed breast with sides of choice.

Source: Jan Barrett, Ware Street Inn

Copy the Story Link