Best Assignment Ever!!

When Paul announced the final blog assignment was to be our favorite recipe I immediately knew I was going to write about my homemade turkey meatballs I use for my spaghetti! Then as I sat down to write I realized that was really just the most frequent thing that I make not necessarily my favorite. So I thought if money was no object and I could have anything I wanted for dinner it would be crab, and I instantly changed my blog idea to crab cakes. I love crab cakes so much I often have them as my entrée even when they are only served as appetizers…which means I usually order 2!! In that spirit I’ve got 2 crab recipes for you because really, you can’t have too much crab!

Dungeness Crab Cake Salad w/ Berry Sweet Onion Salsa:

1 pound Dungeness crab meat

2 teaspoons chopped green onions

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 egg, beaten

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 cup bread crumbs

Salt and Pepper (to taste)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 pound spring greens

4 onions, grilled and chilled

1 pound asparagus, grilled and chilled

Into a bowl, combine crab, green onions, mayonnaise, egg, red pepper, parsley, bread crumbs, and salt and pepper mixing until blended. Shape into 4 cakes (double the ingredients for 8…what I usually do ;). Heat oil in a sauté pan over medium heat; add the crab cakes and sauté until brown on both sides.

Berry Sweet Onion Salsa:

2 tablespoons chopped sweet onion

1 cup mixed fresh blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and sliced strawberries

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

Salt and Pepper (to taste)

To prepare the salsa, combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir gently to blend; set aside

Arrange spring greens, grilled onions and asparagus on 4 plates, Place a crab cake on the greens and garnish with the berry salsa. Mmmmmmmm, enjoy!!

Sautéed King Crab with Wine and Garlic

3 ½ pounds frozen king crab legs, thawed

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 garlic cloves, chopped

½ cup dry white wine

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Salt

Lemon or lime wedges

Remove crab meat from the shells. Rinse in cold water to remove yucky stuff. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for about 1 minute, or until golden brown. Add wine, cayenne and parsley. Raise the heat to high and cook until reduced by half, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium and add the crab meat. Cook for only 2 or 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Add salt to taste, lemon or lime wedges are edible garnish. Sometimes I make bow tie pasta as a bed and serve the crab over it, but it’s amazing either way!!