Hi All, Thought I'd share an update: I did a couple quick half batches for yesterday's football group. The first batch I stuck to the recipe except I added the lobster. The second batch got the thumbs up, I made the following changes: Brushed the muffin tin with melted butter instead of spraying with PAM. Dusted with Progresso Parmesan bread crumbs instead of grated parmesan. The bites held up better. Used 3/4 cup of diced lobster plus more for garnish. Added a tbs. of very finely minced onion sauteed in the butter before I added the flour. Added just a dash of Worcestershire sauce to the cheese sauce. Topped each bite with extra diced lobster before baking. Cooled bites 10 minutes instead of 5 before removing from the pan. I wish I had thought to take pictures... FYI-A whole recipe makes 48 bites using a mini muffin tin.

Some real good ones already posted. Here are a few others. All of these are Barefoot Contessa recipes. I have personally made the first one and we really enjoyed it. I imagine the other two would be equally as good. Mac and Cheese Servings: 6 to 8 Kosher salt Vegetable oil 1 pound elbow macaroni or cavatappi 1 quart milk 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 12 ounces Gruyere, grated (4 cups) 8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups) 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 3/4 pound fresh tomatoes (4 small) 1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well. Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large (4-quart) pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and stir well. Pour into a 3-quart baking dish. Slice the tomatoes and arrange on top. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top. THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S GROWN-UP MAC & CHEESE Serves 6 12 ounces thick-sliced bacon Kosher salt Vegetable oil 1 pound small pasta, such as cavatappi or macaroni 1 quart whole milk 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 12 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated 8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated 6 ounces blue cheese, such as Roquefort, crumbled 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 5 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves 1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Place bacon in one layer on a sheet pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until crisp. Crumble until coarse and set aside. Reduce the oven to 375°. Adjust the baking racks to accommodate 2 sheet pans. 2. Meanwhile, drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente, usually 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well. 3. Heat the milk in a saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large (4-quart) pot and whisk in the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Whisk in the hot milk to form a thick and creamy white sauce and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes more. Off the heat, add the Gruyère, cheddar, Roquefort, one tablespoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. 4. Combine the sauce with the cooked pasta and bacon, and stir until thoroughly combined. Place 6 individual gratin dishes on 2 sheet pans and spoon the pasta into them. (You can also use one 3-quart baking dish.) 5. Cube the bread, place it in a food processor fitted with a steel blade, and process until you have coarse crumbs. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and add to the crumbs with chopped basil. Pulse the machine just to combine. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the pasta and bake until the sauce is bubbly and the bread crumbs are golden, about 35 to 40 minutes. LOBSTER MAC & CHEESE Serves 6 to 8 Kosher salt Vegetable oil 1 pound cavatappi or elbow macaroni 1 quart milk 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 12 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (4 cups) 8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar, grated (2 cups) 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1 1/2 pounds cooked lobster meat 1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed) 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 2. Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add pasta and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well. 3. Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but dont boil it. In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyère, cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and lobster and stir well. Place the mixture in 6 to 8 individual gratin dishes. 4. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh breadcrumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

This always works for a celebration dinner. ROASTED SURF 'N' TURF 2 lobster tails 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. seafood seasoning 1 (3 lb.) whole beef tenderloin 1 Tbs. melted butter or margarine 1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice 6 slices bacon 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots 1/4 cup finely chopped green onions (scallions) 1 clove garlic, finely minced 1/2 lb. Mushrooms, thinly sliced 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup dry white wine 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (optional) or 1 tsp. chopped fresh or 1/4 tsp. dried tarragon (optional) Place lobster tails, salt and seafood seasoning in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from water and drain. Let cool until able to be handled. Carefully remove lobster tails from shells, keeping meat in one piece. Cut each piece of lobster meat in half lengthwise and set aside. Cut a horizontal pocket through the center of meat to within 1/2 inch of opposite side of tenderloin, slicing the entire length of tenderloin. Carefully stuff lobster pieces, end to end, inside tenderloin. Combine the 1 Tbs. melted butter and lemon juice; Drizzle on lobster. Fold over tenderloin to resemble original shape and tie with butcher's twine. Set aside. Cook bacon in a skillet until slightly crisp; drain, reserving drippings. Crumble bacon; set aside. Put beef in shallow pan and brush entire surface of meat with bacon drippings. Insert meat thermometer in center of roast so the point is right below the lobster, making sure it doesn't go all the way through and touch the pan. Bake at 400 degrees for approx. 25 minutes or until thermometer registers 130 degrees (rare). While roast is cooking, saute shallots, green onions, garlic and mushrooms in 1/2 cup butter. Add wine and Worcestershire sauce or tarragon (but not both). Simmer until roast is ready. To serve, remove twine and sprinkle top of meat with crumbled bacon. Serve sauce with sliced tenderloin. Note: The roast can be stuffed earlier in the day and refrigerated (uncooked). Add a few minutes more cooking time if made ahead. The sauce can also be made ahead and reheated.

I'm visiting my wife's family in Maine, there were eight of us tonight and more are on the way over the next few days. Another brother-in-law and I were nominated to be in charge of all the cooking. He wanted to make something special tonight for his son's birthday and he and I were making various suggestions, none of which were hitting the mark, until I suggested lobster mac and cheese. I assumed that Eric would be cooking it since it was his son's birthday, and since he's generally a better cook than me, but as we were getting ready to go shopping he said well I've never made lobster mac and cheese so you are in charge tonight. I read a few recipes, and set off for the store, bought various ingredients, came home read a few more recipes, and started cooking. I also made steamed broccoli, warmed a loaf of bread, and made a salad with my father-in-law's homemade vinaigrette. The result was fantastic. As best as I can remember the following was the as-cooked recipe. Lobster Mac and Cheese serves 10 1 1/2 lb fresh cooked lobster meat (chopped) 1 1/2 lb campanelle pasta 8 oz Vermont sharp cheddar (grated fine) 8 oz Fontina cheese (grated fine) 8 oz Creme Fraiche 1 cup whole milk 1/4 cup wondera flour 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper 1/2 tsp white pepper 1 Tbsp dijon mustard 1 1/2 shallots (chopped fine) 1 stick butter 8 crimini mushrooms (sliced thin) 1 clove garlic (crushed) 1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs 1 1/2 cup of pinot grigio wine pre-heat oven to 350 deg F boil large pot of water, add pasta, cook until al dente. cut larger pieces of lobster into 1/2 pieces. melt butter in large pan. add shallots, mushrooms and garlic, dijon mustard, cayenne pepper, and white pepper. Cook until shallots and mushrooms are softened. Add flour and stir until flour is absorbed into the butter. Add milk, and stir until the sauce thickens. Add 1 cup of wine, creme fraiche and stir the creme fraiche into the sauce. Add the cheeses 1 handful at a time, stirring until it is melted, and then adding more. If the sauce becomes too thick, add more of the white wine. Place drained noodles in large baking dish. Add sauce and lobster meat. Stir gently until well mixed, top with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the tops are lightly gold. Serve.