After the Supper 8 Group Cocktails & Appetizers Party ( link), I had about ½ pound of crab left and:
a. Crab doesn’t last long once opened
b. What a luxurious leftover!
c. It was close to dinner and I wanted to use of what I already had.
I went online to the Bitten Blog to read about Mark Bittman’s ‘Pasta with Crab’, which sounded good—but not decadent enough. So—-
I scrolled down and read some of the reader comments and one comment regarding how this person made pasta with crab stood out. So, this is what I made:
Decadent Crab Pasta
Salad/ Avocado & Balsamic Vinaigrette
½ lb spaghetti
½ lb fresh lump crab, drained
4-5 shallots, finely minced
1/8 C. Brandy
1 C. heavy cream
Salt
1/3 to ½ cup unsalted butter
1/8 cup of finely minced parsley
1. Heat the water to cook your spaghetti and salt the water (it should taste about as salty as the ocean)
2. Melt 1/3 cup butter in a large skillet (one that’s big enough to hold the pasta too because that’s where it’s going).
3. Sauté the shallots until soft over medium heat.
Shallots saute
4. De-glaze the pan with brandy for a minute.
De-glazing with Brandy
5. Add heavy cream and reduce until thickened.
Adding Heavy Cream to sauce
6. Gently sprinkle lump crab over the sauce.
7. Drain pasta (saving 1 cup of cooking water) and pour over crab.
8. Combine, taste for seasonings. If too thick or too dry, dribble cooking water in until the right consistency.
9. Garnish top with minced parsley.
Finished Crab Sauce
This was creamy, luxurious and tasted like the ocean. Vic & Maren sprinkled some grated Parmesan on their pasta but mine tasted great without the cheese. With the pasta all we needed was a green salad, garnished with an avocado and dressed with balsamic vinaigrette.
Cooked Pasta poured over the Sauce
We drank a Sterling Vintner’s Collection Sauvignon Blanc with the pasta. Citrus and other fruit flavors along with a crisp clean taste that balanced the richness of the Pasta and Crab. Delicious.
A crisp white wine
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