Yummy Decadence

In honor of 4,000 hits, I am sharing another recipe from my collection:  Decadent Lobster Macaroni and Cheese.

This is a luxurious dish that requires the preparation of a whole lobster.  Use it only for special occasions.  You can use any shape pasta, but I like the irony of sea-shells with the lobster.  

I do not mess with cooking a live lobster at home.  I go to a local seafood restaurant and ask for them to prepare a lobster for me, including the removal of the edible meat from the claws, knuckles and tail.  Make sure to ask for them to give you the entire carcass, as it is used to impart a luscious lobster flavor in the cheese sauce.

A few tips:  Use a restaurant, if possible, instead of a supermarket for lobsters.  The restaurant will have more volume and therefore the lobsters will likely have spent less time in the tank.  Also, I like to order the lobster late in the afternoon on the day I am serving this dish.  Lobster breaks down quickly after it is cooked.  This is not something that can be done way ahead of time.  

I have been asked whether frozen lobster tails can be substituted in this recipe.  The simple answer is ‘of course,” however, I have not tried it myself.  To substitute for the missing shells in the stock I would probably recommend a little anchovy paste or 1-2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce (which contains anchovy).  This will add a little of the salty, fishy, briny taste that you extract from the shells during simmering.  The difference between this recipe and others where you simply add lobster chunks to mac-and-cheese is that this dish tastes like lobster.

Decadent Lobster Macaroni and Cheese

1 lb. of medium sea-shell macaroni

1 lobster (1 ½ to 2 lbs)—steamed

1 small onion, diced

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided into 2 + 5

2 cups whole milk

1 small clove garlic, minced

1 shallot, chopped

12 whole black peppercorns

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

5 tablespoons flous

2 lbs total of grated cheese, made up of equal amounts:  Extra-sharp cheddar, pecorino romano, and gruyere

3 tablespoons of plain Panko bread crumbs

Dash of paprika

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.   Butter a 13” x 9” casserole.

In a large pot, cook macaroni until al dente.  Drain, reserving 2 cups of pasta water.  Do not overcook pasta as it still needs to cook in the oven!

Remove all edible lobster meat from claws, knuckles, and tail.  Cut into large chunks and set aside.

In a medium pot, melt 2 tablespoon of butter and sweat the onions until soft and translucent.  Remove and set aside.  In the same “seasoned” pot, scald the milk with garlic, shallots, and peppercorns.  Add the carcass of the lobster and then bring to boil; cover tightly and reduce to simmer.  Season stock with salt and pepper.  Allow this lobster stock to simmer slowly for about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, make a “roux” with the remaining 5 tablespoons of butter and 5 tablespoons of flour.  Mix constantly while cooking over medium heat until the mixture is thick and golden yellow in color.  Set the roux aside.

Strain the stock, removing and discarding all the solids, and return the stock to the same pan.  Bring it back to a simmer and then begin whisking in the cheeses slowly until they are all incorporated into a smooth sauce.  Add the roux, reserved onions (my daughter prefers these omitted, as they add some texture to the finished product), and the lobster meat, continuing to whisk.  Use reserved pasta water to thin out the mixture if necessary.

Toss the cooked pasta with the sauce and transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish.  Top the casserole with Panko; sprinkle with paprika.  Bake 9-12 minutes until bubbly and brown.  Serve immediately.

Tomorrow's blog:  Crank Call