Eat it

Lobster has long been in the elite section of any restaurant's menu, but there's so much more available to a lobster chef than the traditional Thermador dish. There's a fair amount of preparation here, but the results are worth it.

Ravioli of English Lobster, Sauce Vierge

Ravioli Dough

250g Soft flour

5 egg yolks

Salt

2 tbsp olive oil

½ cup of water

Method: Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and mix for 30 seconds.Turn onto a table and knead by hand until smooth. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for a minimum of 20 minutes

Ravioli filling

200g cooked lobster, chopped coarsely

50g finely chopped onion

1 small courgette, finely chopped

3 tbsp chopped tomato flesh

3 basil leaves, shredded

10 coriander leaves, shredded

Drop of olive oil

Method: Pan-fry the vegetables gently in a little olive oil for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, coriander and basil season to taste and chill in the fridge.

To make the ravioli

Roll out the pasta in a pasta machine until it is 1mm thick. Cut into 12cm circles. Place a small piece of lobster and some of the filling in the middle. Fold in half and seal the edges with a drop of water. Pinch into a tortellini shape and reserve in the fridge. Continue until you have used the entire filling.

Sauce Vierge

4 tbsp olive oil

Half a clove of chopped garlic

4 tbsp tomato concasse (tomatoes peeled, deseeded and chopped)

Small bunch of coriander

Small bunch of basil

20 black olives

½ tsp coriander seeds, toasted and crushed

Lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Method: Combine all of the ingredients in a small saucepan and warm through at the last minute without boiling. Season to taste.

To assemble the dish

Blanche the ravioli in boiling salted water for two minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and serve immediately with the sauce Vierge and sprinkle with fresh herbs .

Recommended by the Simon Gueller from the Box Tree, Ilkley.


Listen to it

Leonard Cohen

The Essential

His unexpected return to touring has reminded people just how special Leonard Cohen is.

Wise, world-weary, witty, his undeserved reputation for miserablism obscured a poet haunted by the holiness of love and the obscenity of faith, and a voice which told you that you were listening to a man who'd lived and suffered with the best.

This two-CD set could be accused of playing slightly safe in its selections, but any tracklisting would have had its omissions; Cohen has made very few duds in his long career, and none of them are here.

Essential indeed, if only a starting point: