I posted a photo of my freshly cooked lobsters and a small bowl of this amazing Gluten-Free Lobster Mac & Cheese on my Instagram feed this afternoon and my favorite comment, by far, was “Shut. Up.”
I know, I know! It is almost not fair of me to post these photos. This mac and cheese was “ridiculously delicious” according to my mom’s post on my Facebook page so I am compelled to share this super simple recipe so you, too, can enjoy this cheesy lobster deliciousness.
(Possibly, one moral of this story is that I spend too much time with social media… but I think there are probably worse vices. Lobster mac and cheese not being one of them.)
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| Freshly cooked lobstahs |
Back to the important recipe at hand. Gluten-free Lobster Mac and Cheese. Amazingly simple. This large casserole fed 4 children and 6 adults. Yes, you read that correctly – 6 adults. Somehow, every year when I arrive at my parents’ home with my own kids for the summer, my long lost siblings suddenly start showing up for dinner. It is, truthfully, a total win-win. I will cook them anything they want if they tire out (I mean, play with!) my little cherubs for a bit while I play in the kitchen. Today was a killer day – all 3 sibs swung by for a visit and some grub.
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| Gerard – My local fishmonger |
Ever since moving to North Carolina almost four (!) years ago, I have somehow managed to convince my husband, for the good of the children, that we need as many summer weeks as possible by the salty sea air where I grew up. I try to fill every single week with all of my favorite Massachusetts’ foods and people.
Living by the water for these two months, we tend to eat as much seafood as we can get our hands on. We make a lot of visits to Mullaney’s Fish Market … a lot. Today, I spent a good bit of time speaking with Gerard (harassing Gerard) – discussing the optimal amount of lobster meat necessary for an amazing gluten-free lobster mac and cheese. He was encouraging me to put in a pound of lobster meat. I told him that I really don’t love my children that much to put in a full pound of lobster – we settled on 2 small lobsters (chix – less than 1 1/4 lb each) – and Gerard volunteered to cook them for me while I ran across the street to gather the rest of my ingredients. Score.
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| Thanks, Mullaney’s, for cooking up our lobsters! |
Lobstah prep tip: I could write a small book about breaking down a lobster. I will save that blog post for another time. If, however, you are comfortable taking apart a lobster, but don’t love cooking it, ASK your favorite fish market if they will cook your lobsters for you. Most of them will do it for no extra cost and it will save you a lot of time in the kitchen. If we are cooking lobsters for a crowd, we always steam the lobsters outside in our deep fryer (yup – a deep fryer!) but if you only need a few, let someone else do the work. If you don’t like cooking OR breaking down a lobster, you can probably find fresh meat wherever you can buy live lobsters. There’s always a way…
Gluten-free Lobster Mac and Cheese with Smoky Bacon Cheddar
Ingredients:
1/2 lb (or more) fresh lobster meat
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 lbs gluten-free elbow pasta, cooked in salted water and drained but not rinsed
8 ounces Cabot smoky bacon cheddar cheese, shredded
4 ounces grated parmesan (or any other hard, aged cheese)
4 ounces sharp cheddar
1 cup milk
Directions:
1. Prepare your bacon and set aside. Try not to eat it all.
2. Cook your pasta in salted water. Drain it but don’t rinse it. Set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, combine your grated smoky bacon cheddar, most of the grated parmesan, and all of the grated sharp cheddar with one cup of milk. Cook over low to medium heat, stir until it is melted (or at least “melty”).
4. Lightly spray a large casserole with an oil spray. Add the pasta to the casserole. Pour the cheese over the pasta and gently stir the cheese into the pasta so that all of the pasta is evenly coated with cheese. Add the lobster meat and stir into the cheesy pasta.
5. Sprinkle crumbled bacon over the top as well as the remaining grated parmesan cheese.
6. Cook at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes about the recipe …
If you do not have 10 people to feed, cut this recipe in half and use a 9 x 12 pan or even a 9 x 9 pan. I have found that glass pans works best for my mac and cheese.
If you live in an area where you cannot get your hands on any Smoky Bacon Cheddar, you can substitute your favorite cheddar. (Or go online and order some from Cabot … yes, for real, you can have them send you hard to find flavors!)
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| The Simple Stages of Gluten-free Lobster Mac and Cheese |
