Lobster Tail Mac and Cheese

Smoked paprika and cheddar cheese combine to make this lobster mac a hit!

I'm not gonna hold you. Mac and cheese is fire and this is next level fire. FIRE fire, if you will.

Juneteenth > Fourth of July

1881, not 1776.

First things first. I celebrate Juneteenth. June 19, 1865. I am American so July 4th is significant. But as an African American July 4th is just another day, another day of American hypocrisy. Furthermore, on July 4th I celebrate 1881, not 1776. Hey Tuskegee!

If you need more context on this stance I refer you to this clip from Blackish giving some insight into the Juneteenth holiday. I also refer you to this superb spoken word piece by Propaganda that highlights the pain black people feel on the Fourth of July. And if you're still with me I refer you to NPR's video of Frederick Douglass' descendants delivering his Fourth of July speech, highlighting the overt hypocrisy of the holiday.

Now why the hell am I bringing all this up on a post about mac and cheese?? Well I bring this up because I actually made this dish on July 4th. And with the whole nation appearing to be having a WOKE-a-thon these days I figured it was a good share. If that made you uncomfortable, good. If that made you mad, bye!

Be xXesty!

I just moved back to The South y'all! This is the first new dish I've cooked in my new apartment. It was a great way to break in xXesty's new home.

The new xXesty Kitchen

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The Recipe

Here's what you'll need:

• 4 lobster tails

• 1 lb shell pasta

• 5 tbsp unsalted butter

• 5 tbsp all purpose flour

• 4 cups whole milk

• 2 cups smoked cheddar cheese

• 1 cup of cheddar cheese

• 1 cup gruyere cheese

• Chives, chopped

• Smoked paprika

• Cayenne pepper

• Salt and pepper to taste

Cook Tails and Pasta

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Step 2

Fill a large pot with water, add salt, then heat to a boil. Cook the lobster tails for 3-4 minutes. Afterwards place the cooked tails in ice cold water (this prevents them from further cooking).

Step 3

In the same pot you cooked the lobster tails, cook the pasta according to packaging instructions.

Make The Cheese Sauce

Step 4

While the pasta cooks, melt 4 tbsp of unsalted butter in a large skillet. Whisk in the flour and cook the butter/flour mixture for 1 minute.

Step 5

Stir in the milk and cook until thickened, stirring occasionally. Once the sauce thickens, turn off the heat and add the cheeses. Reserve some cheese for sprinkling on the top later.

Step 6

Season the sauce with smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper.

Sauté The Lobster Meat

Step 7

Remove the lobster tails from the ice water and remove the meat from the shells. Preserve the tails if you want to be fancy and add them to the dish as garnish. Cut the meat into bite size pieces.

Step 8

Melt 1 tbsp of butter in a small skillet. Add lobster meat, chives, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper and cook for 1 minute.

Bake the Mac and Cheese

Step 9

Combine the pasta with the cheese sauce in a baking dish. Top with the sautéed lobster meat. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Sprinkle with chives. Garnish with the lobster tails.

Step 10

Bake in oven for 10 minutes or until the top cheeses have melted and are golden brown.

Enjoy!

Credits

Cooked by Julie