Shrimp Mac and Cheese

Not too long ago my husband and I had lunch at a great seafood restaurant in town.  Overall our meal was delicious, but what impressed me the most was the lobster mac and cheese we had as an appetizer.  I love mac and cheese and lobster, but have never tried them together.  The dish was rich and creamy and every forkful had a chunk of lobster in it.  Definitely my new favorite.

It was so good that I attempted to recreate the dish at home.  But after pricing lobster in the market I decided to use shrimp; lobsters's less expensive cousin!

A flavorful and inexpensive alternative, adding shrimp really enhanced the dish.

My family enjoyed the dish just as much as I did.  A decadent one dish meal.  Perfect comfort food for all of the seafood lovers out there!
  

Ingredients
1 pound of fresh wild caught shrimp, peeled and deveined once cooked I cut each shrimp in half 
8 oz fontina cheese, cubed (can be substituted here) 
8 oz sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded 
2 cups half and half 
1/2 C butter 
1/2 C white wine 
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves minced  
1/2 tsp nutmeg 
8 oz cooked macaroni (cook the pasta according to the box directions for al dente pasta) 
1 C panko breadcrumbs 
2 tbsp parsley, chopped 
1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper
4 tbsp salted butter (divided into 1 tbsp) 

Directions 
In a small sauce pan, melt 1 tbsp butter and saute the garlic and shallots until tender.  Set aside.  In a separate skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat.  Add the shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp is pink and cooked through. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.  In a large pot on low heat, stir together eggs, 1/2 cup butter, half-and-half, the fontina cheese, the white cheddar cheese, parsley, white wine, nutmeg, salt and pepper and mix well.  Allow sauce to come to a simmer.  Stir in shrimp and cooked macaroni.  Add the shallots and garlic.  Remove from heat and transfer to buttered 2-quart casserole.  Melt 2 tbsp butter in a bowl.  Add the panko breadcrumbs and mix with a fork until coated with butter.  Top the macaroni and cheese with the mixture.  Bake uncovered, 40 to 45 minutes or until heated through. 


Recipe adapted from: http://www.bhg.com