I have wanted to make Lobster Mac and Cheese for the longest time. So when I was having a crummy week, I thought it would be the perfect pick-me up. (I treat myself really well, don’t I?) Continental, a restaurant in Old City and Midtown, Philadelphia, have the most fantastic Lobster Mac and Cheese. Made with orzo, the restaurants use Fontina and Gruyere cheese to make a creamy, crave-worthy meal. I used a FoodNetwork.com recipe as a base with Continental’s version as inspiration.
I headed to DiBruno Bros. to pick up my cheeses, and they were somehow out of both Fontina and Gruyere. Sad day. DiBruno Bros. never disappoints though, and the cheesemonger helped me choose two cheeses: Comté and Tomme de Berger. Comté is very similar to Gruyere but is from France (rather than Switzerland). It has a slight nutty flavor to it, and melts wonderfully (it’s commonly used in fondue). Tomme de Berger also has a bit of a nutty flavor and is a blend of sheep and goat’s milk. If you can’t find these, substitute Gruyere for the Comté and Fontina for the Tomme de Berger.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups orzo
- 1 pint milk
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 8 ounces Comté cheese, grated
- 6 ounces Tomme de Berger, grated
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 pound cooked lobster meat
- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Grate your cheese.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Heat the milk in a saute pan over low heat (you don’t want to boil it). In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook, stirring with a whisk over low heat for 2 minutes.
Mmmm. Melty, crunchy, lobster-y goodness. The Tomme de Berger added a slight tanginess to the dish that I really liked. It worked so well with the lobster!
Lobster Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 cups orzo
- 1 pint milk
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 8 ounces Comté cheese grated
- 6 ounces Tomme de Berger grated
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 pound cooked lobster meat
- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Cook the orzo according to directions. Drain and set aside.
- Grate your cheese.
- Chop the lobster into large pieces.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Heat the milk in a saute pan over low heat (you don’t want to boil it).
- In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook, stirring with a whisk over low heat for 2 minutes.
- Slowly add the milk and cook for 2 minutes, until it begins to thicken.
- Add the grated cheeses (Comte and Tomme de Berger), 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, and ½ teaspoon nutmeg.
- Add the orzo. and stir to combine.
- Add to individual gratin dishes or to a large oven safe dish. Stir in the lobster pieces.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter and combine with the bread crumbs and minced garlic.
- Sprinkle on top of the orzo. Top with Parmesan cheese if desired.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until it’s bubbly and browned on top.
This looks delicious!
Yummy!
That looks delish! I love the giant lumps of lobsta!
i’ve always wanted to try lobster mac and cheese too! I saw Ina Garten make an unbelievable looking version on the Food Network a while back 🙂 Yours looks soooo good! Super rich and creamy! now i’ve just got to hunt down some lobster…. in Chicago… 🙂
Does it get more decadent and wonderful than lobster mac and cheese?!!
This looks delicious; I just wanted to let you know that until recently, you could find the actual Continental recipe online. It was posted as part of an interview. Unfortunately it is now gone, but somehow I had printed it (which I never do!) Anyway, one thing that might add to the lobster goodness of this is that Continental uses lobster stock instead of milk. The base is mascarpone, cream, and lobster stock. I’m sure you can combine the two recipes, but I just wanted to let you know that the actual recipe does contain stock.
Kathleen,
I didn’t even know there was a version online! That’s really helpful, thank you! I’ll have to try to make this again with stock.
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My son goes to medical school at Penn and I had been to Philadelphia and to the Continental many times and have loved the lobster mac and cheese. We just made your recipe here in Iowa and it was delicious! Thanks for posting the recipe?