"---Valentines day for 3 people -----"

That sounds so kinky and may be illegal in some states.

dcarch :-)

Heart shaped crab cakes?

These crepes would make a lovely starter or even a main course served with a salad. I have made them with half shrimp and half crab but I prefer all crab.

These crepes can also be made with lobster and or crab if you like.

8 oz (250 g) cleaned shrimp
8 oz (250 g) scallops
3 tbsp (45 mL) unsalted butter
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
� cup (125 mL) dry white wine
1 tbsp (15 ml) Pernod ( I omit)
3 tbsp (45 mL) finely chopped chives or green onions
2 tbsp (25 mL) chopped tarragon (if I can find it fresh)
2 tsp (10 mL) finely grated lemon zest
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
8 cooked crepes (Basic Crepes - recipe follows)

1. Cut the shrimp in half, lengthwise, and the scallops in quarters or halves, depending on their size. Set aside.

2. In a large frying pan, melt 2 tbsp (25 mL) of the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook until transparent. Add the garlic, shrimp and scallops and cook, stirring constantly, until the seafood is just cooked. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the seafood to a bowl.

3. Add the wine to the pan and bring to a boil, and deglaze by scraping up the browned bits from the pan. Boil until reduced by half, add the Pernod and pour over the shrimp and scallops in the bowl. Stir in the chives, tarragon, lemon zest and season with salt and pepper.

4. Preheat the oven to 400�F (200�C).

5. Butter a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-cm) baking dish with the remaining butter. Put 1 crepe on the counter and place 2 to 3 tbsp (25 to 45 mL) of seafood mixture on it just below the centre. Roll up the crepe and place it in the prepared baking dish. Repeat until all the crepes and mixture are used up.

6. Pour the remaining liquid over the crepes cover the baking dish with foil and bake for about 15 minutes or until hot.

--------------------------

Crab Bisque would also make a lovely first course. You will have to adapt this recipe for I can of crab but it works well with canned crab.

Crab Bisque

Servings

1 Cup onion, roughly chopped
1/2 Cup celery, roughly chopped
1 Tbl shallot, roughly chopped
1 Stick unsalted butter
1/2 Cup flour
1/2 Tbl sugar
2 ounces brandy, or cream sherry
2 Lb crab, dungeness in shell, or lobster, shrimp o
1/4 Cup dry white wine
1/2 Tbl paprika
1/2 Tsp salt
2 Tbl tomato paste
1/2 Tsp pepper
1/4 Tsp cayenne
1/2 Cup heavy cream
6 Cup water
6 ounces crab meat

Saute onions, celery and shallots in butter in large stock pot until tender. Add crab, cut up, and simmer 15 minutes. Move crab aside and add flour and sugar, stir into vegetables and butter. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add brandy and cook 5 minutes. Add wine, tomato paste, paprika, salt, pepper, cayenne, cream and water, Simmer 15 minutes and remove from heat. Press solids through fine mesh strainer, put back in pot and heat. Taste, and if necessary, simmer until reduced and flavor is bold. Garnish with crab meat, in each bowl.

Four cups is a lot of crab meat, even for four people. I would probably make Crab Louis; here's my recipe:

rab Louis

Ingredients:

1 pound crab meat
several leaves of green leafy lettuce, such as Romaine, Butter, Green Leaf, or Red Leaf
1 large Haas avocado, fully ripe, peeled and halved, with seed removed*
1-2 tomatoes, depending on size
2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
3-4 white or brown button mushrooms, thinly sliced
8-12 black olives, sliced in half, optional
1-2 green onions, minced (one large or two small)
Louis salad dressing

Directions:

Sort crabmeat to remove any remaining shell and set aside.

Arrange two plates with leaves of lettuce, just enough to cover the plates.

Halve the avocado and thinly slice each half, keeping the slices in place. Transfer each half to a plate with the cavity side up in the center of the plate. If you cannot keep the slices in place, you can arrange the slices like the spokes of a wheel. Place the crab meat in a heap in the center of the plate or in the cavity of the avocado.

Cut the tomatoes into wedges, approximately 8-12 wedges per tomato, depending on size. Arrange the tomatoes around the avocado halves in a spoke pattern. Arrange the hard-boiled egg and mushroom slices between the tomato wedges, and sprinkle with olive slices and green onion.

Pour about 2-3 tbsp Louis salad dressing on top of the crab.

Serve with toast.

*Note: you can substitute chopped, cooked asparagus for the avocado.

Crab Louis Dressing:

2/3 cup mayonnaise,
1/3 cup chili sauce,
1 Tbsp minced green onion,
2 tsp lemon or lime juice,
1 tsp prepared horseradish
dash of bottled hot sauce or cayenne

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Chill before serving.

I have a recipe for deviled crab that I based on what I have had on the Texas Gulf Coast, if you are interested in that.

Lars

Crab quiche!
Crab Newberg!

No, not kinky DC! It's family hour here: Me, Dh and my dad and our two dogs who usually get at least a bite of everything. And the Boston Terrier we are fostering...

Lars, you are right, four cups is a
lot and I could make 2 different things.

The crepes sound wonderful and so a quiche and
Dh would love the crab Louis as it has his favorite things: mushrooms and black olives but I don't like either.

But I ate so many crab cakes at Christmas I don't want them again yet. But heart shaped sounds appropriately cute, ynnej!

And nobody likes soup much. yep.

I really like the saltiness of the meat with the mildness of the crab in this recipe. The ones in the photo are rolled a bit sloppily but I can get a neater roll by laying the prosciutto on waxed paper and using it to help the process.

COACH HOUSE CRAB WITH PROSCIUTTO � 6 servings

24 thin slices of prosciutto
12 oz. Fresh lump crab meat
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. Tabasco sauce (I use Cholula)
1 lemon
2 Tbs. minced parsley
Freshly ground black pepper

Arrange 4 slices of prosciutto on a flat surface, each slightly overlapping the other. Place a heaping tablespoon of crab in the center of the end slice. Roll ham slices over filling cigar-style; repeat with remaining meat and crab to make 6 rolls.

Heat butter in a large skillet; when it foams, add the six rolls. (The ham will cling to the crab when heated.) Turn rolls once and cook until ham starts to frizzle and crab is heated through. Transfer to a hot serving dish.

Add Worcestershire and Tabasco to skillet and squeeze in juice of lemon. Heat for about 30 seconds and pour over ham. Sprinkle each roll with parsley and pepper.

This makes a nice first course or a light lunch/dinner.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Layered Crab And Spinach Terrine
================================
From the California Culinary Academy

Crab Layer

1/2 pound crab meat, picked over and flaked

1/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon Dijon Mustard

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 large eggs

Spinach Layer

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 teaspoons flour

1/2 cup whipping cream

2/3 cup half and half

1-1/4 pounds cooked spinach
Drained and squeezed to remove excess moisture

3 eggs

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Salt to taste

Sauce

Mix together,

1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely minced roasted red pepper
1 clove of minced garlic
Salt and pepper to taste.

Clives for garnish
. Preheat oven to 375�F. For the crab layer: In a medium bowl combine
the crab, sour cream, lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper and cayenne.
Stir in eggs and set mixture aside.

For the Spinach layer: Melt butter in a heavy saucepan until foamy.
Whish in flour and cook for 3 minutes over medium heat, stirring
constantly.

Whisk in whipping cream and half-and-half. Bring to a boil and then
reduce heat and simmer slowly 10 minutes. Stir occasionally, scraping
down the sides and around the bottom as necessary. Mixture will
thicken as cooks.

Remove from heat and stir in spinach. Let cool. Stir in eggs, one at
a time then add black pepper, nutmeg, sugar and salt.

To assemble the terrine: Grease an 8 cup loaf pan/terrine pan with
butter. Spoon half the crab mixture in the bottom and cover with all
of the spinach mixture. Spoon remaining crab mixture over the spinach.

Set the terrine in a baking pan and pour 1 inch of hot water into the
baking pan. Bake uncovered until golden brown and puffy. Approximately
30 to 45 minutes. Cool on a rack and then refrigerate.

To serve, run a knife around the edge and invert on to a serving
platter. Slice about 1/2 thick slices and place two on each plate.
Decorate plate with a lettuce leaf and place a dollop of the sauce on
the lettuce leaf. Garnish with a few chives.

This recipe is delicious and very simple to make.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

She Crab Soup
=============
I've been making this recipe for over 30 years. Makes a wonderful first course.

1 quart of milk/cream
6 tablespoons of butter
1/4 small onion
1/2 pound of crab meat
3 ounces of roe or 2 hard cooked egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup flour

Sherry
. Heat cream or milk

Melt butter and saute onion. Let simmer until soft and add crabmeat,
egg yolks or roe. Add flour, paprika, cook 3 to 5 minutes. Do not let
flour brown. Add hot cream/milk and simmer 20 minutes. Add Sherry.

Serve additional sherry at the table for individual taste.

Option.

Whip heavy cream and serve a dollop of cream in each bowl of soup.

It wouldn't use all of it, but for Valentine's I like to make heart shaped ravioli. If you google, you'll find lots of recipes.

Wow, everything looks wonderful! Thanks for posting. I'll have to show dh the pics and see what appeals to him most.

Here is a link to the 'Exoskeletal' cookalong, started by LindaC.

Here is a link that might be useful: cookalong #7

Spicy crab sauce over linguini, haven't had since my favorite Italian restaurant moved way out of town. Just your extra spiciest (I like to have steam coming out of my nose) marinara with some of that crab. I love it.

Thanks jessy for the link. I knew there were lots of related threads.
Woodie, my spiciest would be extra garlic! No heat for us. Mild Taco Bell is spicy enough for me.

I make these a few times a year from the crab you describe. They are over the top delicious!

I went to the hardware store and had them cut me a few 3"x3" tubes of PVC pipe to make the stacks or you might use a cleaned out can.

My favorite is the Roppongi crab stack recipe.

Here is a link that might be useful: Crab Stack

Those are beautiful Deborah! I can see how they would impress at the table.

Actually, I forgot about one of my all time favorites, Crab Rangoon.
It does involve deep frying but I may drag out the electric skillet to the patio.