The Matchmaker Vs. The Lobster

I feel lucky to have my sisters. Now that we're all grown up, we get along fabulously. We look forward to spending time together. We pitch in to help cook dinner. We help each other when, say, one of us breaks an ankle. It wasn't always this way. Food brings us together now when it used to keep us apart.

Haley, my youngest sister, totally flipped out once when she opened the refrigerator to find a deer carcass. Cecily, my other sister, flat-out refused to eat the groundhogs I shot for dinner. But now, when we spend time together, it's not just harmonious, it's fun.

I've been hobbling around on a bad leg, so Haley volunteered to cook dinner under my guidance.

Haley is a professional matchmaker and personal stylist. Think Hitch + Millionaire Matchmaker, but without the pretension. She's full of love-based facts like, for instance, that lobsters mate for life. It's just the sort of thing you want to know just prior to plunging the poor critters to their deaths in boiling water. To avoid the guilt trip, I made Haley do it.

Haley doesn't really cook, so this was a great opportunity to get her into the kitchen. I think she had fun. I know I did.

Here's the recipe for the lobsters:

6 (1 to 11/4 lb) live lobsters

1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature

1 head roasted garlic, peeled

1 cup chopped cilantro stems

1 chipotle pepper in adobo

Boil the lobsters in a large pot for 4 minutes. (The lobsters will not be cooked through.) Remove the lobsters and let cook. Cut the lobsters in half lengthwise with a chef's knife or kitchen sheers.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Pulse the butter, garlic, cilantro, chipotle, and 1/2 tsp salt in a food processor. Spread the butter on the meat of the lobsters. Bake the lobsters, cut sides up, in oven until the meat is cooked through. This will take 5 to 6 minutes.