Before we get to today’s recipe… Yes, I’m actually posting a recipe today… I want to wish each and every one of you (lucky enough to be born Irish, or not) a safe, healthy, and very Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

The recipe comes courtesy of Barbara Fenzl and Les Gourmettes Cooking School. Barb made these easy and delicious morsels in her classes this session. They are THE perfect easy-breezy appetizers for carefree entertaining!

The crabmeat mixture can be made a day ahead, covered, and refrigerated. As can the panko coating – if you wait to drizzle on the melted butter until just before assembling the crab cakes.  Additionally, you can bake the crab cakes an hour ahead, then remove them from muffin cups and place them on a baking sheet and leave them at room temperature, and rewarm them in a 350-degree oven for 6 to 8 minutes. Voilà – the easiest crab cakes you’ve ever made!

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For my last appearance on Valley Dish, I asked the host, Tram Mai, what she would like to make.  After some 15 cooking appearances, it was the first time to make something of her choice instead of my choice or a specific themed assignment.  Tram requested a dish she had back in her college years in Los Angels at a restaurant called Crustacean.  After much online research, I compiled several people’s take on the roasted crab and came up with my own rendition.

The roasted crab is outstanding, but I think the real star of the dish is the garlic noodles.  The key is to find thick spaghetti, also known as spaghettoni or bucatini.  I found them at Whole Foods and in the Italian specialty aisle at the “big fancy” Fry’s on Tatum and Shea.

As for the crab, although the version we made on the live show used Dungeness crab, I’ve also tried with the pasteurized canned crab found at Costco and it tasted exactly the same… plus it’s more economical and so much easier!

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Well, while my posts have been all about cheese the last three days, we’ve been in the middle of a big-time cold spell and we’ve been having soup every single night! Don’t love the overnight freezing temps (poor plants!) but I do love having the perfect excuse to have soup all the time.  Here’s a hearty favorite.

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I have an excellent excuse for not posting yesterday and delivering with the promised seafood crepe recipe. I was on a “special, highly covert, high-security assignment” revolving around THIS, for the Food section of our newspaper, The Arizona Republic.

OK, it wasn’t exactly “all that”! But I was developing recipes for the cover story of the Food section for an upcoming issue. So, I was busy! And the story/recipes really do revolve around THAT.

As bizarre as it certainly sounds, I will fill you in on the details after the story runs in the newspaper, it’s quite amusing, (Let’s just say that THAT had never ever crossed the threshold of my home before this task was handed to me – and all of my friends and family were in a state of shock to see it sitting on our kitchen counter!) so stay tuned.

Now the promised, exceedingly sought-after, and highly anticipated “special occasion” crepe recipe…

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Just because I’ve named these Christmas custards, don’t think that they wouldn’t be good anytime of the year… in fact – it has been requested that I make them again for New Years Eve, and I just may!

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Be sure to check back in tomorrow for “The Big Day” and find out what all the hype (self-induced as it may be) is about!

I’ve previously mentioned the pasteurized lump crab available in 16-ounce containers at Costco and how much I like that product. I always have it on hand since the “use by” date is at least 6 months out. What is pasteurized crab and why does it last so long? Please allow me to explain.

When the crabs reach the processing plant, they are alive. They are washed and steamed, the shell is removed, and they are cleaned. The meat is inspected and then pasteurized under a controlled thermal heat treatment before being sealed in airtight containers. This process makes the meat 100% bacteria-free. Pasteurized crab meat remains fresh for 6-12 months if refrigerated at 33-35 degrees and as long as the container is not opened. Once opened, the crab must be used within 3 days. Even though it has a long shelf life, it is important to store the container in the coldest back part of your refrigerator so it is not heavily affected by the constant opening and closing of the refrigerator door.

Marissa noticed that the container of crab in our fridge was set to expire next month, so crab was on the menu! I was planning on using it in a linguini dish but noticed some pappardelle pasta for sale at Trader Joe’s.

Pappardelle is a flat pasta cut into a broad ribbon shape. Its width is between tagliatelle and lasagna. Think of it as fettucini on steroids. Pappardelle is traditionally served with very rich, heavy sauces and is considered more of a winter pasta and I can see why.

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As promised, here’s a tasty way to use the leftover crab from yesterday’s crab cakes. Baby potato halves make excellent little hor d’oeuvre cups. And a small melon baller is the perfect tool to hollow them out, so be sure to pick one up the next time you are at the grocery store – that’s right, you’ll find one in the “kitchen aisle” of your neighborhood grocery store. For another vehicle to hold the crab, try small mushrooms, just pull out the stems and use them either fresh or lightly roasted.

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I have a dozen or so crab cake recipes but I chose this particular one for Peggy’s birthday because it is extra light. What makes it so, is separating the egg and folding it in the whipped egg white just before cooking. The presentation with the herbed salad and aïoli is especially lovely, but the cakes are delicious on their own, so make it “easy-breezy” and leave those elements out, if you wish. I know I’ve mentioned before the fabulous real crab sold at Costco, but it is worth talking about again.

The brand they used to sell was Phillips, now they carry Blue Star, both are exceptional quality and totally fabulous. What makes them so? Real lump crab that has been pasteurized with a “use by” date on the bottom of the container that is generally about 9 months to a year out. So there is no excuse to not have crab on-hand anytime you need it. For this particular recipe, only about half of the container is used, so you can either double the amounts or be sure and use the remaining half container within a day or two.

To that end, I shall post another crab recipe tomorrow to finish it off. Another thing I have talked about before is the fact that the food processor has a special feature especially for making mayonnaise and aioli. If you need a refresher, click here to go back to that post. Finally, as always, if you don’t have Meyer lemons, no problem, just substitute regular lemons.

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Today is completely devoted to shopping, prepping, cooking, and setting up for tomorrow night’s neighborhood Progressive Dinner. I’ve got at least a portion of the five different appetizers that I am making, done. And parts of the soup and side I’m providing to one of our dinner hosts, so that feels good. The tiki torches are set up in the yard, now it just needs to stop sprinkling out there so that I can wipe down all the outdoor furniture. Come on “Valley of the Sun”, work with me!

The Caribbean Crab Salad is finished – that shall be today’s post. This salad is easy and quick to pull together, especially if you already have the pasteurized crabmeat on hand. It can be found at Costco and some grocery stores. Since the crabmeat is pasteurized, it can be purchased now and stored in the refrigerator for about 9 months (there is an expiration date on the bottom of the container.)

The porcelain spoons are inexpensive and can be found in Asian markets. The metal spoon pictured was purchased in a set of 12 at Crate and Barrel. There will be more Jamaican party recipes to follow for the next several days…

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Marissa drove home yesterday and stayed overnight, just a pit stop on her way to Las Vegas for a girls’ weekend. She and I took Dave out for his belated birthday dinner. Our family tradition is to take the birthday boy/girl out for a nice dinner to a place he/she has never been before, and it’s always a surprise to that person right until the moment we pull into the parking lot. I chose a seafood restaurant that has been here in Scottsdale since 1971, but for whatever reason, Dave has never been there. I had not been there since I was in high school, I  don’t know why!  It’s this cool “old school” place called The Salt Cellar and the seafood was as good as any we’ve ever had on either the East or West Coast!  Dave had a Maine lobster and Marissa and I each had crab legs. So Good!!!  We had several leftover crab legs and those high-end leftovers are what inspired this “have fun in Vegas – but please be Careful and Safe!” breakfast.

If you don’t have an oven-proof skillet, meaning a skillet with a handle that won’t be ruined under a broiler, just tightly wrap the handle of the skillet several times with aluminum foil, now it is oven or broiler-proof.

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