Crustacean Infestation

Every now and then we do something "in memory of" Thatdad. After his memorial service a couple weeks ago, we decided to go to one of his favorite restaurants. Khourys in Long Beach.

The food at Khourys won't leave you dreaming of the day you can return, but Thatdad was in love with the all-you-can-eat lobster buffet. We grew up eating lobster a lot. Probably more than your average family. And I say that because when I tell people how often we ate lobsters, they're always surprised. But every couple of weeks, Thatdad would bring home a couple of lobsters and Thatbrother and I would race them around the kitchen floor before they got thrown into a pot. I didn't realize that lobster was a "fancy meal" until much much later.

Thatdad liked all you can eat just about anything. But lobster might have been his favorite. He liked to take full advantage of the term "all you can eat."

The Khourys buffet offers more than just lobster. There are salads, seafood dishes, prime rib, a pasta station...Thatdad didn't mess with any of it. He made rules like - "we're here for the lobster. They want you to fill up on all that other crap. Don't be a fool. Lobster only."



And of course, you had to eat at least 3 lobsters. You know, to really stick it to the man. I personally can't eat that much, so I stick to 2 lobsters. Thatmom can do 3 with years of practice, and I'm pretty sure Thatbrother and Thatboy matched her.



It always makes me sad when seafood restaurants have fish tanks. It reminds me of the song in The Little Mermaid.

The fish on the land ain't happy They sad 'cause they in their bowl But fish in the bowl is lucky They in for a worser fate One day when the boss get hungry Guess who's gon' be on the plate

And this little fella was in the tank ALL by himself. Wonder what happened to his little fishie friends?




After dinner we headed to ice cream - because even if we don't subscribe to Thatdad's philosphy of only eating lobster, we knew we could find better dessert elsewhere. And we did! I think I may have mentioned that Thatfamily calls anything cold and frozen "ice cream" whether it be frozen yogurt, sorbet, or actual ice cream. Apparently we're not the only ones. Strickland's Ice Cream sells delicious frozen custard. I love frozen custard and haven't been able to get my hands on it in years, since we left Pennsylvania. It's creamier than regular ice cream and thicker. And I do enjoy having a place close to Thatmom for my rare ice cream indulgences.

And now, since this blog has gone FAR too long without a recipe, I leave you with what is one of my favorite "other crap" to fill up on with lobster - hot, buttery, rolls. The perfect complement to shellfish, and perfect for sopping up the last bit of drawn butter that may have dripped on your plate. Because why on earth would you waste perfectly good butter? At least, that's one of my rules.

I like making my rolls with hot milk, because it saves you from proofing the yeast, a timesaver. And the milk helps to create a really tender roll.

Dinner Rolls

• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 1 envelope yeast
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted

1. Combine 3/4 cup flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.
2. Heat milk, water, and butter until very warm (but not boiling)
3. Add dry mixture to wet mixture in the bowl of your electric mixer. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup of flour and beat at high speed for 2 minutes.
4. Stir in flour as needed to create dough. Knead in electric mixer with dough hook 8-10 minutes. Cover and let rest in warm, draft free environment (remember the oven trick?) for 10 minutes.
5. Divide dough into 12 equal balls. Place in greased 8 inch cake pan. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size (about 30 minutes).
6. Preheat oven to 375. Bake rolls for 20 minutes. Brush with melted butter.