Root Vegetable And Apple Soup With Dungeness Crab and Brown Butter

 

Root Vegetable and Apple Soup with 

Dungeness Crab and Brown Butter

Nothing warms the soul more than a tasty bowl of soup topped with seafood.  This recipe is a winner, a real "dinner winner"!

Ingredients:

1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 turnip, peeled and diced
1 rutabaga, peeled and diced
1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
10 cloves garlic, chopped
8 ounces unsalted butter, divided, plus more for garnish
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
4 sprigs thyme
2 cups white wine
4 cups vegetable stock
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon salt
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bunch fresh chives, chopped, for garnish
2 steamed crabs or fresh Dungeness crab meat
Juice of 1 Meyer lemon
Directions: 

Cook the vegetables in 4 ounces of butter for 10 minutes in a Dutch oven. Add the apples and thyme and cook for another 10 minutes.
Deglaze the vegetables with wine and reduce the liquid for 5 minutes. 

Add the vegetable stock, heavy cream, maple syrup and salt and simmer very low for 2 hours.

Blend the soup on high until completely smooth. Season with additional salt and pepper.

Brown 4 ounces of butter in a sauté pan until the liquid turns golden brown. Add the crab meat and lemon juice and cook on high for 2 minutes.

Pour the warm soup into a bowl and top with the brown butter crab. Garnish with chives and extra brown butter.  Serves 4 to 6

Crab Cakes

                                              

Crab Cakes

Place crabmeat in colander to drain.  Mix all ingredients together and blend until smooth.  Add crab meat and toss lightly, only to coat.  Form into patties.  You may fry in a skillet until evenly browned or bake at 375*F for 12 to 15 minutes until an internal temp is 165*F.  Serve with aioli.  Recipe follows:

Crab Cakes

1 lb. crab meat

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

2 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon mustard

1 teaspoon parsley flakes

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

Directions:

Place crab meat in colander to drain.  Combine all ingredients except crab in bowl.  When thoroughly mixed, add crab.  Be careful to not over-mix.  Form into cakes or patties and fry until brown or Bake at 375*F 12 to 15 minutes.  Serve with Aioli.

Aioli: 

1 cup mayonnaise

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/4 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning

Mix mayonnaise with crushed garlic and Old Bay seasoning.  Best if made ahead for flavors to develop.

Crab Cakes

 

Crab Louie Salad

Crab Louie Salad

Ingredients Dressing:

1 1/4 cup light mayonnaise

1/3 cup finely chopped oil packed sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup milk

1 1/2 chopped fresh chives

1 1/2 tablespoon chopped parsley

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoon tomato paste

1/4 teaspoon Worchestire sauce

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

Salad:

1 lb. asparagus cut in 5" lengths

Romaine lettuce

1 lb. crab, drained

Shrimp

Tomato

Hard boiled eggs

Cucumber

Lemon

Directions:

Whisk dressing ingredients together in medium bowl.  Season to taste with salt and pepper: Chill.   

Cook asparagus in pan of boiling water about 3 mimnutes until crisp, drain and transfer to water with ice.  Cool and then drain.  Place lettuce in large bowl toss with dressing.  Mound lettuce on plates.  Top with crab, garnish with shrimp, asparagus, tomato, eggs cucumber and lemon.  Pass remaining dressing separately.   

Louisiana Crab Cakes Benedict

"I’m going to go ahead and say it: New Orleans doesn’t do a very good version of the crabcake (for the most part). Theye make them, however, nonetheless. In New Orleans, they lean too much on bread crumbs as a binder and bell pepper and onion as filler, so the crab part of the cake frequently gets lost. In my best estimation, it’s a version of the stuffed crab, just without a shell. The Big Bad Breakfast crabcakes are unapologetically more in the bready, New Orleans style. My justification is that cooking them this way makes a fantastic base for a Benedict, with the cake becoming a crabby English muffin substitute, topped with a poached egg."—John Currence

Ingredients

Hollandaise (makes 1 1/4 cups):
4 egg yolks
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
4 dashes of Tabasco hot sauce
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup clarified butter 

Crabcakes:
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons Creole mustard or whole-grain Dijon mustard, divided
3 tablespoons diced green bell pepper
3 tablespoons diced red bell pepper
2 1⁄2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 egg yolks
1 shallot, minced
1 teaspoon diced and seeded jalapeño
1 pound lump crabmeat, picked over for shells
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs, plus more for coating
Salt and black pepper
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 

To serve:
8 poached eggs, warmed
1 cup Hollandaise, warmed
Pinch of cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons chopped chives 

Method

Make the hollandaise: fill a large saucepan with 2 inches of water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Whisk together the egg yolks, water, lemon juice, salt, white pepper, Tabasco, and cayenne in a stainless steel bowl. Set the bowl over the simmering water (but not touching it) and whisk constantly until the eggs thicken to the consistency of thickened heavy cream (it should barely leave a trail when the whisk is dragged through it), 7 to 10 minutes. Drizzle in the clarified butter, whisking vigorously, until fully incorporated, about 1 minute. Season with salt and set aside in a warm place but not over direct heat (on the stove top, with the oven on). Be very careful because the hollandaise will separate if it gets too hot or too cold.

Make the crabcakes: in a bowl, whisk together 1⁄4 cup mustard, bell peppers, cream, lemon juice, yolks, shallot, and jalapeño. Fold in the crabmeat gently but thoroughly, followed by the bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before forming into cakes. 

Divide into 8 portions. Form each portion into 2 1⁄2–inch patties that are about 3⁄4 inch–thick. Place the bread crumbs on a plate and coat each cake with the bread crumbs. Warm the oil in a sauté pan over medium heat for 1 minute. Place the crab cakes in the pan and cook, turning regularly, until golden on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Divide among 4 plates. 

Top each crabcake with a poached egg. Stir together the hollandaise and remaining 3 tablespoons mustard and spoon over the cakes. Dust lightly with cayenne pepper and sprinkle with chives for garnish. Serve immediately. 

Reprinted with permission from Big Bad Breakfast by John Currence, copyright © 2016. Photography by Ed Anderson. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Random House LLC.

Yield

4 servings

Thin Spaghetti With Crab And Asparagus

Thin Spaghetti With Crab And Asparagus

Ingredients:
1 lb. thin spaghetti

1 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 stick unsalted butter

2 basil sprigs plus leaves for garnish

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan plus more for serving

Kosher salt and pepper

1 lb. jumbo lump crabmeat

Directions:

In a large saucepan of salted boiling water, cook the pasta until almost al dente, 5 to 7 minutes.  Add the asparagus and cook until the pasta is al dente and the asparagus is crisp tender, about 2 minutes longer.  Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain well.

Meanwhile in a very large skillet, melt the butter with the basil sprigs over moderate heat.  Add the pasta and asparagus, the 1/4 cup cheese and 1/2 cup of the cooking water.  Cook over moderate heat tossing, until the pasta is coated in a light sauce, about 3 to 5 minutes, adding more of the cooking water if needed.  Season the pasta generously with salt and pepper.  Gently fold in the crab and cook until hot, 1 to 2 minutes.  Discard the basil sprigs and garnish with basil leaves and serve, passing more cheese at the table.

  

Crab Bombs

Crab Bombs

Ingredients:

1 lb. Crabmeat
1 Egg, beaten
1 cup Ritz Crackers, crushed
1 tsp. Yellow Mustard
2 tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
2 tbsp. Fresh Parsley, chopped
1 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning
1 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce

*

Directions:

Place crabmeat in a mixing bowl, picking any stray shell fragments out. Add crushed crackers, Old Bay Seasoning & parsley to the crab. In a separate bowl, combine egg, mustard, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce. Whip with a whisk until smooth. 

Pour egg mixture over the crabmeat and crackers and gently mix careful not to break up large lumps of crabmeat. 

Mold into golfball sized balls and place on a cookie sheet. Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Drizzle w/ melted butter and allow to cool.

Crab Pie ~ Makes Two Pies

Crab Pie 

Ingredients:
2- 9" deep pie crusts (baked 3 minutes and cooled)
1 lb. lump crab meat *
4 eggs
2 Tbsp. flour
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup whole milk
8 oz. shredded Swiss cheese
8 oz. shredded Cheddar cheese
2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
1- Tbsp. finely chopped onion
1- Tbsp. finely chopped green pepper

*

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350º - par bake your crust for 3 minutes. We used Pillsbury pie dough and it worked out great. We did spray the pie pans with Pam spray to keep the crust from sticking.
2. Combine eggs, flour, mayonnaise and milk, mix well. Add remainder of the ingredients (except crab meat) and mix well.
3. Fold in crab meat and try not to separate the lumps of crab meat too much. Pour into 2 separate pie crusts, sprinkle with additional Old Bay Seasoning.
4. Bake at 350º for 50 minutes or until knife comes out clean. (Check at about 40 minutes to avoid burning, since ovens vary).

Baked Potatoes Three Ways

Baked Potatoes Three Ways

Baked Potatoes

By Sam Sifton

Twice-Baked Potatoes With Cauliflower and Cheese

By Sam Sifton

Baked Potatoes With Crab, Jalapeño and Mint

By Sam Sifton

The nights are coming faster now, and dead leaves rustle across grass and sidewalk. “Look at that moon,” Thornton Wilder wrote in “Our Town.” “Potato weather, for sure.”

Baked-potato weather, for sure. Slide a rack of russets into a hot oven for 45 minutes while you sort mail or pay bills, check email or help someone with homework. Set up a fixings bar of butter and bacon and Cheddar, chives and sour cream. The reward is one of the great, undervalued actors in all dinner theater: Mr. Split-Top himself, dressed in finery.

A recipe for basic baked potatoes follows. The key instructions are to pierce the jackets of the potatoes in a number of places to allow them to exhale steam as they cook; to lightly grease their exteriors with oil, so that they crisp; and to salt them a little, just because.

Be patient as they cook, and feel absolutely no pressure to accompany them with anything but toppings. If bacon and Cheddar do not appeal, you can try a combination of thyme, chervil and chives. The hedge-fund set may prefer a heaping tablespoon of caviar.

Dressed to your tastes, a baked potato makes a nice accompaniment to a slice of prime rib or a steak, even a roasted chicken. It is also quite nice served with a tart salad.

But a baked potato can be a meal too. This is particularly the case when you start making additions to the starch — cauliflower and cheese in the case of the second recipe, and crab meat, jalapeño and mint (cheese, too!) in the case of the third.

For the cauliflower version, abide by the teachings of the great British home cook and writer Nigel Slater, and cook the florets in milk scented with bay leaves as you bake the tubers. You’ll be rewarded with a sweet pairing for the starchy potato flesh, beautifully countered by the salty nuttiness of Parmesan at the end. For the crab, be very gentle with the meat, tossing it lightly with lemon, mint and jalapeño. The idea is to have a topping to the mashed potatoes that is pillowlike in its delicacy.

These potatoes are sometimes called twice-baked. That is a misnomer, but still an excellent name. They’re baked, then disassembled, then heated through with a cheese hat that melts across their surface. The amount of time added to the overall process is neither negligible nor problematic. The result is a simple, elegant one-plate dinner, an old-school pleasure best consumed with friends.

Be patient as they cook, and feel absolutely no pressure to accompany them with anything but toppings. If bacon and Cheddar do not appeal, you can try a combination of thyme, chervil and chives,

Crab and Roasted Red Pepper Bisque

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 12-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 pound fresh lump crabmeat or canned crab
1 teaspoon Old Bay or Cajun seasoning
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons salt

*

Directions:
Heat the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onion until tender and translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute.
While the onion is cooking, melt the butter over medium-high heat in a large pot. Once the butter is melted, whisk in the flour until smooth and cook for a minute (or until the mixture starts to brown).
Then, add the chicken broth, red peppers, tomato paste, crabmeat (if you want to garnish the soup with crabmeat, reserve a few ounces), Old Bay, cayenne pepper, and onion to the pot. Let the mixture simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until smooth.
Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth (you could also use an electric blender and puree in batches, returning the soup to the pot when it is pureed).
Add the heavy cream, red wine vinegar, and salt to the pot and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes, or until heated all the way through.
Garnish with crab meat, if you reserved any, and/or a swirl of half and half if desired.  Serves 4

Corn and Crab Soup

CORN AND CRAB SOUP

This soup is quick to prepare and the corn's fresh flavor is deliciously highlighted by the ginger, mint and lime. Crab makes a great addition but diced shrimp or even lobster would also work.

Ingredients:
3 to 4 cobs of corn, shucked
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
1 teaspoon sugar
3 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons soy sauce
7 oz. crab meat, drained
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1/3 cup packed fresh mint leaves, shredded

Directions:
Using a knife, remove the corn kernels from the cobs, placing them in a bowl. You should have about 3 cups. The the back of a knife, press down on the cob extracting any milky juice. Add it to the kernels: set aside.

Heat the oil in a saucepan; add the corn, green onions, ginger and sugar. Cook for 2 minutes to 3 minutes, then add the stock and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Skim then reduce the heat and simmer until the corn is tender, about 4 minutes.

Stir in the crab, lime juice and mint. Check the seasoning and serve. Serves 2 or 4

Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

                            Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients: 24 lg. mushroom caps Juice of 1 lemon 1/2 lb. crab meat 1/2 c. mayonnaise 1/4 c. minced celery Dash of Tabasco 1/2 c. minced parsley Directions: Toss mushroom caps in lemon juice; set aside. Mix together crab meat, mayonnaise, celery and Tabasco. Fill each cap with crab mixture. Chill and serve. Sprinkle with parsley just before serving. Makes 24.

Louisiana Hot Crab Dip

Louisiana Hot Crab Dip 

This is a recipe which is posted almost daily on Facebook.  I have access to a great supply of crab meat.  It just sounds like a recipe I will be trying when I can share it with friends!

Ingredients:

1/2 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, free of shells 

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

3 tablespoons minced green onions (white and green parts)

2 large garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon hot sauce

1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

Salt and pepper to taste

*** 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Combine all of the ingredients in a casserole dish and gently stir until thoroughly mixed. Adjust seasoning to taste. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until lightly golden on top. Serve hot.

Serve hot, with hot sauce on the side for those who like it spicy.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Maryland Crab Cakes

MaryLand Crab Cakes

Ingredients:

1 large egg

2½ tablespoons mayonnaise (I'd use light mayo)

1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup finely diced celery

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

1 pound lump crab meat*

½ cup panko

Canola oil

Directions:

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Combine the egg, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, Old Bay, salt, celery, and parsley in a large bowl and mix well. Add the crab meat (be sure to check the meat for any hard and sharp cartilage) and panko; gently fold mixture together until just combined, being careful not to shred the crab meat. Shape into 6 crab cakes (about ½ cup each) and place on prepared baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat a large nonstick pan to medium heat and coat with canola oil. When oil is hot, place crab cakes in pan and cook until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes per side. Be careful as oil may splatter. Serve immediately with tartar sauce or a squeeze of lemon.

Quick Tartar Sauce
Ingredients:  

1 cup mayonnaise
1½ tablespoons sweet pickle relish
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced red onion
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice, to taste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Crabmeat Sauce

Crabmeat Sauce

This sauce will enhance the flavor of fish or seafood. Many times it is the sauce that makes the dish and this sauce is simple to make!

***

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup finely chopped red pepper

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cup whipping cream

8 ounces fresh or frozen crab

Salt and Freshly ground pepper

2 Tablespoons chopped parsley

***

Directions: Melt butter over medium heat: add onion, celery, and red pepper and saute for 5 minutes until softened. Stir in chopped garlic and paprika and cook one minute. Stir in hot pepper sauce, mustard and whipping cream and cook for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and add 8 ounces of crab. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, stir in parsley. Serves 4

Californian Crab Stuffed Avacado

This is a recipe from the June 2007 edition of Wine Enthusiast. Some of the best recipes I have tried have been found in this publication. This is another winner!

Californian Crab-Stuffed Avocado

For The Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup olive oil

1 small shallot minced

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl.

For The Stuffed Avocados:

1 cup uncooked medium-grain rice

2 cups chicken stock

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tablespoon butter

Zest of 2 lemons(about 1 tablespoon)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 ears fresh sweet corn, Husked and cleaned

4 cups mixed salad greens

2 medium-ripe avocados

12 ounces cooked crab meat

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

***

Directions:

Combine rice chicken stock, garlic and butter in a small saucepan. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat; reduce heat to low and cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove rice from heat and stir in lemon zest and salt, and let cool.

***

Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add corn; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Remove corn with tongs and cool. Using a sharp knife, cut kernels off the cob, (about 1 cup kernels).

***

Peel, seed, and halve avocados. Divide salad greens among four plates and top with avocado halves. Combine rice and corn and mound into avocado halves and top with crab meat. Drizzle each stuffed avocado with vinaigrette and sprinkle with cilantro. Serves 4

Crab Louie Salad

click on photo to enlarge

Crab Louie Salad With Sun-dried Tomato Dressing

This is an absolutely wonderful salad made even better with the dressing. Do Not substitute the dressing, absolutely do not! I photographed Anne's salad just befor we sat down to eat outdoors Easter Sunday with a bright sun. I apologize for the shadows but the salad was so blog worthy! Thanks again, Anne!

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup light mayonnaise

1/3 cup finely chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup milk

1 1/2 Tablespoons chopped fresh chives

1 1/2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons tomato paste

1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

***

Directions: Whisk ingredients together in medium bowl to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill.

***

1 pound asparagus, trimmed to 5" lengths. Cook asparagus in pan of boiling salted water until crisp tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl of ice water: cool. Drain, cover and chill.

***

Place lettuce in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Mound lettuce on plates. Top with crab. Garnish with shrimp, asparagus, tomato, eggs, cucumber, and lemon. Pass remaining dressing separately.