Sebastian’s Very Own Cookbook - Lobster Soufflé

Sometimes Sebastian goes overboard in how delicious his treats are – it just goes to show that he is the best butler out there. Continuing along with his cookbook, we enter into the realm of seafood. You’ll want to brag to your friends about this one!

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp. finely grated Parmesan or other hard cheese
2 ½ Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1 cup hot milk
½ tsp. paprika
fresh grating of nutmeg
½ tsp. salt
3 grinds of white pepper
4 egg yolks
5 egg whites
Pinch of cream of tartar
½ grated Gruyere cheese
Lobster tail
½ cup white wine

DIRECTIONS

Butter a 7 1/2″ -8″ round soufflé dish. Roll the grated Parmesan around the sides and bottom of dish. Have ready an aluminum collar that is 3″ above the dish and a straight pin to secure. Preheat the oven to 400ºF and set the rack to the lower third level.

Pour white wine into a small saucepan and bring to boiling. Place lobster tail in and poach for approximately 8 minutes. Let cool and remove meat and chop finely.

Melt the butter in a medium sized sauce pan and add the flour. Cook stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Do not brown. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Pour in all the hot milk at once and whisk vigorously to blend. Return the saucepan to the heat and with a wooden spoon stir and let boil slowly for 3 minutes. The sauce will turn very thick. Remove from heat and whisk in the paprika, nutmeg, salt and pepper. One by one whisk in the egg yolks. Add cooked lobster.

In a separate bowl beat the egg whites to stiff shiny peaks. Scoop a quarter of the egg whites and stir into the egg yolk mixture. Turn the rest of the egg whites on top and gently fold in with a wooden spoon, alternately adding sprinkles of the grated Gruyere cheese. Spoon mixture into the prepared dish and place the aluminum collar on and secure with the pin. Place in the oven. Reduce heat to 375ºF. Bake for 30-35 minute or until the souffle has puffed 2-3 inches and the top is nicely browned. You can slide a cake tester into the outer edge to make sure it is done.

Remove from the oven and carefully remove the collar. Bring to the table immediately and plunge two spoons into the center and pull the souffle apart. Serve onto individual plates.

Wow - you can cook this masterpiece, then you’ve got some major bragging rights! Good luck and let us know how it turned out!

NEED FINANCIAL HELP?

Now you can enlist Sebastian as your financial advisor and safeguard for your money!

These wallets will be appearing at retail stores in the next few weeks. 

Have a butler wake you up!

Not a morning person? Perhaps starting your day with Sebastian and Claude greeting you might make getting out of bed, just a tad easier.

Look for these awesome new mini clocks to make an appearance soon at retail!

Want a chance to win some sweet Black Butler swag?

Read on for the details!

funimation:

We’ve got a question for you. If you had a butler, how would you want him to wake you in the morning? Head on over to our forum, answer this question, and you just might win some sweet Black Butler swag.

Click on this link for more details! …

Sebastian’s Very Own Cookbook - Fried Curry Bun

From classic European food to a Japanese delight, Sebastian can cook, and do, anything he sets out to do. Which makes him even more, ahem, lovely. So, as loyal butler-fanatics, what must we do? Why, cook his food! Sebastian’s Very Own Cookbook continues with a delightful treat far different than what Britain is used to – a Fried Curry Bun!

INGREDIENTS

1 teaspoon yeast      
¼ cup water (lukewarm)
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
1 cup water
1 cup leftover curry
1 egg (lightly beaten)
1 tablespoon milk
1 cup panko bread crumbs

DIRECTIONS

Mix the yeast and the warm water in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes. Mix in the flour, sugar, salt, butter and water and form dough. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 10 minutes.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise to double its size, about 60-90 minutes. Knock the dough down and knead for 2 minutes. Place the dough back into the bowl and let rise again. Knock the dough down and knead for 2 minutes. Cut the dough into 8 pieces and set aside.

Mash the curry to form a paste. Mix the egg and milk in a bowl. Roll out one of the pieces of dough into a 6 inch circle and place a spoonful of the curry in the center. Brush some of the egg wash around the edge of half of the dough and fold it over and pinch the dough closed. Fold the pinch to one side.

Form the rest of the buns until done.

Dip the formed bread into the egg wash and then dip them into the panko bread crumbs to cover.

Cover the bread with plastic and let rise while you heat the oil. Heat the oil in a pan. Place the bread into the oil and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 60-90 seconds per side. Place the cooked curry bread onto some paper towels to drain while it cools.

Let us know how this turned out and get some bragging rights!

Your favorite butlers want to get into your pants!

Well pant loops that is. Coming soon to your favorite anime store, Black Butler Belts! Can’t wait, Hot Topic has our favorite red-head Grell already for sale!

Sebastian’s Very Own Cookbook - Fresh Raspberry Parfait

When watching Sebastian make all of those yummy and delectable dishes, doesn’t it make you want to devour them? (And maybe him as well? Teehee.) Well, we can help you with at least one part of this little problem. Presenting… Sebastian’s Very Own Cookbook! In it contains the dishes that could make any proper butler jealous of your skills. Impress your friends and family- these dishes will make any mouth water. And who knows? You might end up as good of a cook as Sebastian.

Our first dish of the book is simply delicious and rather easy to make – though you may get hooked on it. Sebastian’s Fresh Raspberry Parfait is perfect for a picnic. In fact, our favorite butler prepared this for Ciel and Elizabeth during a relaxing break in “Solo Butler” from Season 2.

INGREDIENTS

3 pints fresh raspberries, divided

1⁄2 cup sugar, divided

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Garnish: fresh raspberries

DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan, combine 2 pints raspberries and 1⁄4 cup sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 8 minutes or until raspberries have softened. Press mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, discarding solids. Cover raspberry sauce, and chill thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and remaining 1⁄4 cup sugar at medium speed with a mixer until creamy. Add cream, and beat until soft peaks form. Fold in sour cream and vanilla.

Layer cream mixture, raspberry sauce, and remaining 1 pint fresh raspberries in 4 parfait glasses, as desired. Garnish with fresh raspberries, if desired.

Make sure to send pictures of your final creation and how it tasted! Make the world see how talented you are – and make them all really hungry. Good luck!

NEW BLACK BUTLER MERCHANDISE + RIGHT STUF SALE!

Here’s a sneak peek of some of the newest Black Butler merchandise that is just now beginning to ship to stores! There’s a Sebastian zipper pouch, some file folders, and now these awesome tumblers so you can drink your selection of Ciel approved teas on the go. These will be showing up to some of your favorite anime stores soon!

Also, Right Stuf is having a 40% off sale on FUNimation DVDs, Blu-rays and merchandise. This means that if you haven’t picked up Black Butler Season One or Black Butler Season Two yet, now is a great time!

funimation:

Meow! To celebrate the simulcast of Hetalia: The Beautiful World, we made some cute animated gifs! Here’s one, but if you want the rest you’ll have to go to our Elite Member forums.

Not an Elite Member yet? Just go to http://www.funimation.com/subscribe to start your FREE 14-day trial.

It may not be Black Butler related, but we all know that Sebastian would love this animated gif with the kitteh! 

Sometimes anime, work, and vacation have an odd way of overlapping. I just got back from a more than 2 week vacation in England. While there I was able to visit Fortnum and Mason, a store that’s been around since 1707 and is where the Queen shops. The entire first floor is dedicated to teas, coffees, and sweets. So I picked up some cookies and an assortment of teas to bring back to my fellow FUNimation employees to enjoy.

Of course a Black Butler fan may recognize the store, Fortnum and Mason for another reason. In the second episode of the series Ciel is served tea from this British landmark.

I also got to visit Tower Bridge, which we see under construction at the end of Season One in the Black Butler animated series.