From The Jersey Shore Cookbook: “This comforting dish features pieces of rich lobster—tails and claws make for the best mac and cheese. Serve it as a side, family-style for a main course, or even in individual ramekins for a nice touch to any dinner party display.”Reprinted with permission from The Jersey Shore Cookbook (Deborah Smith, Quirk Books, 2016)
1poundmacaroni, such as elbows, shells, or orecchiette (or lobster-shaped pasta if you can find it)
Grated Parmesan cheese, to taste
2cupscooked and diced lobster meat
Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Sea salt, to taste
½cupsliced shallots
¾cupchopped fresh chives
½poundunsalted butter(1 cup)
3cupsheavy cream, divided
1cupshredded Asiago cheese
1cupcubed Swiss cheese
1cupshredded Monterey Jack cheese
1cupshredded Cheddar cheese
Bread crumbs, to taste
Instructions
Cook pasta al dente according to package directions, transfer to a colander, and drain.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Fit a metal mixing bowl over it to create a double boiler. Add all cheeses (except Parmesan) and 1-½ cups of the heavy cream.
Melt cheeses, stirring often to prevent burning. If mixture seems too stringy or clumpy, add some of the remaining cream. The texture should be velvety and a bit loose--the consistency of cheese soup.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a sauté pan over medium heat, melt butter. Add chives, shallots, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes, or until shallots are tender. Add lobster and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes.
In a large bowl, combine lobster mixture and pasta and stir. Slowly add as much cheese mixture as desired.
Transfer mixture to an oven-safe dish and top with Parmesan and bread crumbs. Bake for 12 minutes, or until browned on top and warm in the middle.
Notes
Note: Labrador Lounge's recipe calls for 3 cups of heavy cream total. As noted in their directions above, they call for starting with 1-½ cups and adding additional cream until the desired sauce consistency is reached. Depending on your preferences and the specific cheeses you used, you might not need the entire 3 cups.