crabmeat

Culinary Crab Rolls

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? The Next Step: Culinary Crab Rolls! Seafood lovers will look for any excuse to substitute chicken or beef. Do we really need a reason? Building healthy lifestyle choices could be enough to make me try new things. Seafood is a lean protein option which does fill me up the way fruit, vegetables, and nuts do. The fact remains that I truly like the taste of seafood. Pairing it with bread is practically a bonus. Need I say more?

CULINARY CRAB ROLLS

Ingredients:

6 frozen bread dough rolls, thawed according to package instructions

3/4 cup crabmeat, precooked and chopped

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon green onion, chopped

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 egg, beaten

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray muffin tin with nonstick oil. Set aside. In a bowl, combine crabmeat, mayonnaise, green onion, and red pepper flakes. Once dough has risen, press into a 3-4” circle. Fill the center of each circle of dough with a heaping tablespoon of crabmeat filling. Gently pull the edges around the filling to form a ball, lightly brushing the seam with beaten egg, then pinching the edges to seal. Place in muffin cup, seam side down. Brush tops with beaten egg. Repeat with remaining rolls. Set aside to rise until puffy. Dough should be nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm.

Eating My Way Through the Alphabet: Letter L

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? The Clean Plate Club: Lump Crabmeat Salad! Be pampered on a sunny porch or backyard patio with a light luncheon for two. Dining al fresco is especially popular with nature’s backdrop of fragrant flowers and tittering birdsong. These are what days are made of. If it’s a late afternoon gathering of light appetizers and spritzers, serve this lump crabmeat salad with crackers instead. Fresh fruit is always a good idea. Take advantage of warm weather and celebrate a party-like atmosphere.

LUMP CRABMEAT SALAD

Ingredients:

8 ounces wild caught lump crabmeat, cartilage removed

1 tablespoon Italian dressing mix

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 rib celery, diced

1/4 cup red pepper, diced

4 teaspoons chives, sliced

1 teaspoon tarragon leaves

1/8 teaspoon dry mustard

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon celery seed

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon white pepper

1 dash sriracha sauce

Red pepper, halved and membrane removed

Bibb lettuce leaves

Instructions:

Gently rinse crabmeat in a fine mesh strainer to remove any shell pieces or cartilage. Do not break up crab chunks. Transfer crabmeat to a medium bowl. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning mix. Toss to coat. Drizzle with lemon juice. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. In another bowl, combine mayonnaise, diced celery, diced red pepper, sliced chives, tarragon leaves, dry mustard, garlic powder, celery seed, kosher salt, white pepper, and sriracha sauce. Mix well. Add the crabmeat mixture to the mayonnaise mixture, gently coating the lump crabmeat. Spoon the crabmeat into two hollowed out red pepper shells. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate one hour. Arrange Bibb lettuce leaves on two saucers; place lump crabmeat salad on each plate. Serve chilled.

Eating My Way Through the Alphabet: Letter L

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? The Daily Special: Lazy “Lobster” Wrap! When you don’t live at the ocean where lobster is in abundant supply, the next best thing is an imitation variety. Alaska pollock is not only heart-healthy, fat-free, and packed with omega-3 in every serving, it’s readily available at your neighborhood market. Amazingly, this mock lobster is a surprising alternative. Eat it now and with the money you save, you can stuff yourself with real lobster when you travel to the shore.

LAZY “LOBSTER” WRAP

Ingredients:

7-ounce package of chunk-style imitation lobster

1 tablespoon lemon olive oil

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

cracked pepper to taste

sea salt to taste

1 pat of butter

Vidalia onion slices

1 4-ounce container of crab dip, deli-style

2 flour tortillas

Spring Mix Salad Greens

Instructions:

In a medium skillet, sauté imitation chunk lobster and onion slices in lemon olive oil, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. While still warm, add 1 pat of butter. Cook an additional minute to blend flavors. Remove from heat. To assemble wrap: Take a flour tortilla, spread on a layer of crab dip, top with salad greens, and add a spoonful of lobster mixture. Roll it together to form a wrap. Serve warm or cold.

Dining Outside the Home: Blue Lobster Grille in Rockport, Massachusetts 

Dining Outside the Home: Blue Lobster Grille in Rockport, Massachusetts! Some days it pays off to forego classic menu items and roll with the specialty of the gourmet chef, especially when it comes to seafood. Today’s feature: Stuffed Haddock in a creamy butter sauce. Agnoldo Oliveira takes his reputation seriously. Never mind that the Blue Lobster Grille affords the perfect vantage point of Rockport’s iconic Motif No. 1 as well as daily activity around Dock Square. You’ll find yourself trying not to stare at the heaping plates of those customers around you. It’s that good!