A Mother Sauce in Lobster Mac 'n Cheese

Lobster Mac 'n Cheese with tomato, basil, lemon, & white cheddar cheese.

Cooking Doesn't Have to be a Chore.

If you're like me, you tend to avoid as many mass-manufactured processed products as you can. Those convenience foods often consist of artificial colours, flavours, emulsifiers, stabilizers, thickeners, sugars, salt, palm oil, GMO's, and shelf extenders. What we get for convenience doesn't make up for the loss of nutrition, taste, or quality. Making something from scratch more often than not tastes better than any box you can find on the grocery shelf.

Cooking doesn't have to be a chore. With a few basic recipes and techniques, you can create a variety of different dishes with just a little bit of advanced planning. The next time you are craving macaroni and cheese, try this recipe for a homemade version (with plenty of options to change the flavours) instead of that little blue box of KD. To get the recipe, continue reading.

Make Your Own Cheese Sauce Using Bechamel

Béchamel sauce also known as white sauce, is made with a roux of butter and flour cooked in milk. It is one of the mother sauces of French cuisine and is used as the base for other sauces. One of these variations, Mornay sauce, is Béchamel with cheese added- this is what we will use to make the sauce for macaroni & cheese. I've added lobster, tomatoes, basil, and used white cheddar is this dish, but feel free to substitute some other ingredients to suit your mood or to use what is seasonal and available. As long as you follow the basic steps to making the mother sauce (flour+ butter --> roux + milk = béchamel), the possibilities are endless.

Sebastian, the clawed lobster.

Sebastion, the clawed lobster post sauna.

Lobster Mac 'n Cheese with Tomato, Basil, Lemon, & White Cheddar

Serves 10 as a main course but recipe can be halved for smaller quantities.

1/3 c butter
1/3 c flour
5 1/2 c heated milk
5-6 c shredded white cheddar cheese (or whatever you prefer- Crossroads Cheese is a local product)
1 c heavy cream (optional)
salt & white pepper to taste
1 pound dried pasta noodles (macaroni, shells, penne, or bowties)
1 c seeded and chopped tomatoes (1/4-inch dice)
1/4 c chopped fresh basil leaves
1 T finely grated lemon zest
2 c lobster meat cooked (1/2" to 1" size pieces if possible)

• Heat milk to just under a boil. In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat and stir in flour until a paste forms. Cook roux (butter & flour mixture) for one minute, without browning. Adjust your heat source if necessary. Slowly whisk in hot milk, stirring constantly. Turn heat down and cook the sauce over low heat until the there is no starchy-taste remaining (about 20-45 mins). Stir frequently to ensure the sauce does not stick to the bottom of the pot and to prevent lumps. Season with salt and pepper. You just made Béchamel sauce! (To be 'authentic' you would also season the sauce with grated nutmeg.)
  
  
• Once the sauce has thickened slightly and flour has cooked out, turn off the heat. Stir in shredded cheese, and allow to sit for a minute or two to melt. Stir well and taste. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Using an immersion blender (not necessary but does make a smoother sauce), blend sauce. Add heavy cream if using, and check seasoning again. I don't like thick, stodgy, cheese sauces so that is why I added the extra cream. You can do this sauce a few days in advance if required. (Reheat over low heat.)
  
  
• Cook pasta noodles in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain.
  
  
• In a large bowl (or the pasta pot) add cheese sauce to noodles and stir. (You may not need or want all the sauce- if not- refrigerate for 5 days or freeze up to 3 months.) Add tomatoes, basil, and lemon zest. Stir again. After noodles are well combined with sauce, tomatoes, basil, and lemon zest, carefully fold in lobster pieces. You want big pieces of lobster so don't stir too roughly. Check your seasoning again and serve.
  
  

You also turn this into a casserole, by following the recipe, then covering with 1 1/2 c bread crumbs, and baking at 375 F for 25 mins. covered with aluminum foil, then 10 mins uncovered to brown the crumbs. Let rest 10 mins then serve.

Other variations: use chicken or shrimp instead of lobster, use gouda instead of cheddar, use sundried tomatoes instead of fresh, add sauteed mushrooms, use tarragon for basil, use spinach for broccoli, etc.

I have yet to try a Béchamel sauce made with gluten-free flour such as coconut or tapioca, but I will post results as soon as I do. There are some great tasting gluten-free noodles now available and this meal could easily be adapted for special diets.

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