Maine-style Lobster Macaroni & Cheese
Lobster Macaroni & Cheese in the Maine style according to dishes served in the state, with Cavatappi corkscrew noodles, and cheese from Vermont
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb cavatappi or Cellentani™ (a.k.a. “corkscrew”) pasta, dried see Notes below
- 3 cups milk, whole or raw raw milk is legal for sale in Maine
- 6 Tbsp butter not margarine
- 6 Tbsp Wondra™ quick-mixing all purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp dry mustard
- 1/2 cup Vermont sharp cheddar cheese, finely shredded
- 1/2 cup Gouda cheese, finely shredded
- 1/2 cup Gruyere cheese, finely shredded
- sea or Kosher salt
- white pepper, ground
- 2 cups Parmesan cheese, finely shredded for topping
- 1 lb lobster meat, warm
Instructions
- Prepare the pasta according to its instructions, ensuring it’s al dente when finished.
- While the pasta is cooking, cut the butter into pats about 1/2 Tbsp each.
- Add the milk, pats of butter, and flour to a 2-quart saucepan and whisk well till the flour is dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Allow the sauce to boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly, reducing the heat as needed to prevent scorching.
- Remove the sauce from the heat. Whisk in the dry mustard, and the Vermont sharp cheddar, Gouda, and Gruyere cheeses, then whisk until smooth.
- Add the sea or Kosher salt and white pepper to the sauce to taste.
- Drain the pasta (be sure to toss it to get all the water from inside the noodles) and pour it into a large mixing bowl.
- Fold a serving-spoon portion of the sauce with the warm lobster, enough to sauce the lobster meat with a thin coating.
- Fold the remainder of the cheese sauce into the pasta.
- Plate the Mac & Cheese topped with the sauced lobster meat, followed by the shredded Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Some cavatappi packages, especially store branded, are 12 ounces instead of 16. This recipe is for 16 ounces of dry cavatappi. If the package is 12 ounces, it's better to buy four of them and make three 16 ounce containers than it is to adjust the recipe for the cheese sauce for a 12 ounce package. The other dry noodles will keep for a later batch anyway.
- You can also use medium shells (aka "mezzo conchiglie"), elbow macaroni (aka "Gomiti" or "Chifferi"), or a Penne or Pipette pasta if cavatappi is unavailable.
- To rejuvinate leftovers of this dish, stir in about 1/2 cup whole milk for half what the recipe makes, and reheat in a pot over medium heat until just heated through. Do not microwave, as doing so will destroy the texture.
- This recipe was adapted from the cheese sauce recipe on the Wondra™ container.
- “Wondra™” is a Registered Trademark of General Mills.
- "Cellentani™" is a Registered Trademark of Barilla