Holiday Feast: Lobster Mac'nCheese, Grillades and Praline Bread Pudding (+ Recipes)

Christmas dinner has always been an elegant occasion. Celebrated on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, it is the culmination of a season of cheer, joy, hopes and prayers for peace and good will. These recipes are very American with a Southern accent.

The Lobster Mac’nCheese came from Sarasota, Florida’s My Cooking Magazine, Grillades and Grits is a French Quarter classic available in many New Orleans restaurants and the Bread Pudding recipe is courtesy of Famous Dave Anderson, a delightful gentleman I served alongside as a judge at the Jack Daniel’s International Barbecue Invitational in Lynchburg, Tennessee.

These are festive dishes. There’s magic in the aromas, flavors and taste in each bite.

Lobster Mac'nCheesePhoto byDown South Today

LOBSTER MAC N’ CHEESE

Ingredients:

1 pound lobster meat, cooked and cut into medium sized chunks

3 large garden tomatoes, sliced

1 pound pasta (your favorite shape) cooked

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 large garlic cloves, minced

½ cup red onion, chopped fine

¼ cup all-purpose flour

3 cups milk, at room temperature

1 ½ cups sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (or your favorite)

1 ½ cups grated Gruyere cheese, grated (or your favorite)

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

½ cup fresh chives, chopped fine

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup panko

1 tablespoon olive oil

¼ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped fine

Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Preparation:

Cook pasta al dente. Drain and set aside. Place 4 tablespoons melted butter in a sauce pot over medium-low heat, add garlic and onion and cook until onion is translucent. Next, whisk in flour and cook flour for several minutes. Carefully pour in milk and bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Continue to cook and whisk until sauce is smooth and thick enough to coat a spoon. Remove sauce from heat and slowly whisk in cheese, a handful at a time. Season cheese sauce with mustard, chives, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper, to taste. In a large mixing bowl combine cheese sauce and cooked pasta then fold in chopped lobster. Lightly spray a baking dish with pan release spray. Pour pasta mixture into baking dish. Arrange sliced tomatoes on top of the pasta mixture. In a small bowl combine panko, olive oil and parsley and sprinkle over the tomatoes. Bake the lobster-tomato mac & cheese in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 10 to 20 minutes or until topping is crisp and cheese sauce is bubbly. Let cool slightly before serving.

Grillades and Grits, A Delicious New Orleans Favorite.Photo byDown South Today

GRILLADES AND GRITS

For the Grillades:
2 lbs. round steak pounded to 1/4 inch thickness and cut into 2-inch squares

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Creole Seasoning

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 medium yellow onions diced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 large red bell pepper about 1 cup, diced

1/2 cup celery diced

2 cups tomatoes diced or 1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

5 tablespoons unsalted butter or 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 cups beef broth

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

3 bay leaves

2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped

For the Grits:

1 cup Logan Turnpike stone-ground grits

5 cups milk

1 teaspoon sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine the 1/2 cup flour, salt and one teaspoon of Creole Seasoning in a shallow bowl. Dredge the pieces of beef in the flour, shaking off the excess and transfer to a large plate.

Heat the oil in a stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Place the beef in the skillet, being careful not to overcrowd, and fry on both sides until browned. Transfer the beef to a plate.

Saute the onions in the skillet until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute. Add the bell pepper and celery and saute until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add the tomatoes and saute for another 4-5 minutes, scraping up any browned bits in the skillet. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl.

Melt the 5 tablespoons of butter or olive in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the 1/3 cup flour and whisk constantly until the mixture is a rich brown, about 4 minutes. Add the beef broth and red wine vinegar, whisking continually until the mixture is smooth and thickened.

Return the vegetables to the skillet and add the Creole Seasoning and bay leaves. Return the beef to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is very tender, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the parsley and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the bay leaves.
Serve the grillades and gravy ladled over hot grits.

For the Grits:

In a 5-quart pot over medium-high heat, bring the milk and salt to a simmer, stirring regularly to prevent the milk from burning.
Slowly add the grits in a steady stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Add the salt. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the grits are thick and tender.

Praline Bread Pudding.Photo byDown South Today

FAMOUS DAVE’S PRALINE AND BREAD PUDDING

Ingredients

Bread Pudding:

1 loaf french bread or other white bread

2/3 up golden raisins optional

1 1/2 cup sugar

4 cup milk or half & half

2 cup whipping cream or whole milk

1/4 cup vanilla

8 eggs beaten

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Whipped cream or ice cream

Instructions:

Coat bottom and sides of 13-by-9-inch baking pan heavily with butter.Tear bread into 1-inch pieces. Mix with raisins in bowl. Lay bread mixture evenly in prepared dish, turning crust side down, as this tends to burn easily. In bowl, whisk sugar, milk, whipping cream, vanilla, eggs and cinnamon until blended. Pour over bread mixture. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place baking dish in larger 4-inch deep baking pan. Add water to reach halfway up side of dish. Bake in preheated oven 1 hour.Remove from water bath. Let stand 20 minutes.Cut pudding into portions and put into large dessert bowls. Add a scoop of ice cream next to the pudding, and then spoon 3 to 4 ounces of warm praline sauce over the pudding and the ice cream. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Famous Dave's Praline Sauce:

1 cup butter

3/4 cup chopped pecans

3 1/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup whipping cream or whole milk

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 1/4 cup sour cream

3/4 tsp. vanilla

To make this sauce, it is very important to follow the directions carefully and to use a candy thermometer. If you don't have time to make this sauce, just use a high quality store bought caramel and add pecans to the sauce.

For this Praline Caramel recipe, in a large saucepan, heat 1/2cup of the butter until melted. Add pecans and mix well. Bring to a boil.Cook until pecans begin to change color. Mixture will foam up.Add remaining 1/2 cup cubed butter and mix well. This will cool pecan mixture and stop the cooking process. Remove from heat. Do not over cook. Combine brown sugar, whipping cream and cinnamon in a saucepan and mix well. Cook over low heat until blended, stirring constantly. Increase heat and cook until mixture comes to 230 degrees on a candy thermometer. Or boil mixture for about 1 minute. Stir in pecan mixture. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix well. Remove from heat.

Merry Christmas!