1.21.2013

Creamy Crab Pasta (Secret Recipe Club)



It's time for January's Secret Recipe Club! In the SRC as we all call it, we are assigned a blog from which we make a recipe and blog about it, while someone makes one of ours in turn. It's a secret until our assigned Reveal Day, which is today. This month, we were assigned the blog Mele Cotte, which is written by Chris, and which happens to already be on our blog roll. We have a lot in common with Chris (besides the name, that is). Chris is a middle school administrator who uses her blog as a personal diary of recipes, but also as a (very cheap) form of after-school therapy. Sound familiar?



Mele Cotte has so many recipes and beautiful photographs that accompany them, making it very difficult to choose what to make. But as often happens, the contents of our refrigerator made the decision for us. A couple of weeks back, our grocery had a sale on jumbo lump crab meat, and that can has been taunting us from the shelf since then. Chris's recipe for Creamy Crab Pasta sounded like the perfect vehicle, plus it had "comfort food" written all over it!







We made a few changes, not because we doubted Chris or her recipe, but again, based on the contents of our refrigerator. It's been a lazy couple of weeks. Regardless, the dish was everything we hoped it would be - a deliciously creamy pasta with chunks of sweet crab thank clung to the pasta in a dreamy way. Luscious!

Creamy Crab Pasta
minimally adapted from this recipe on Mele Cotte

Ingredients:

¼ cup unsalted butter
¼ cup all purpose flour
2 cups half and half
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for garnish
¼ teaspoon. ground nutmeg
kosher salt, white pepper, and black pepper to taste
1 lb. cooked lump crab meat
1 lb. cooked rigatoni pasta

In a large saucepan or deep skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook about 1 minute, until thick and combined, but not discolored. Whisk in cream, and stir until the sauce begins to thicken. Stir in the cheese and seasons to taste. Simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors, and stir in the crab meat. Cook just until the crab is heated through. 
Serve over cooked pasta of choice. Top with additional cheese and pepper, if preferred.


17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Looks tasty, especially with all the chunks of crab!

Melissa said...

Oh this looks so delicious! Great pick!

Chris said...

oh! I love this one....thanks for trying it! It's a little different twist on my favorite...pasta! :) Have a great week!

Erin said...

Oh man, this looks delicious! You had me at crab! Wonderful SRC pick!

Bubbe Bites said...

What a wonderful recipe. I bookmarked it for later. It would be great for lent!

Christine @ Christine's Kitchen Chronicles said...

This recipe sounds right up my alley. Thanks for sharing!

Chelsy Ethridge said...

yuuuuuum!

Lisa | Authentic Suburban Gourmet said...

With fresh crab in season - this is a perfect way to enjoy it! Delish! Glad to be part of SRC with you!

Kirstin said...

YUM! Love pasta, love crab, love cream! Great choice. I'm a fellow SRC Member, group D

Feast on the Cheap said...

This is calling out to me...I've been on such a carb kick recently. I literally have to remind myself to eat protein.

Rachel said...

Ooooh yes! This looks incredible! I love the cans of jumbo lump crab...so decadent!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake said...

Oh, boy, what a great choice! This pasta looks so decadent and delish!!!

Kate said...

Yummy and easy! I'm hooked!!!

Lillian (My Recipe Journey) said...

A yummer for sure!!! I'll be trying this soon! I have a can of lump crab meat thats been in my fridge since Christmas...now I know what to do with it! Thanks for sharing!!!

Lillian (My Recipe Journey) said...

Okay, I'm back to say that I just tried this and it's PERFECT!!! Thick, creamy, cheesy, crab and pasta heaven!!!I made it exactly as written! I'll be blogging about it on Valentine's Day! Thanks again for this great recipe!

Lillian (My Recipe Journey) said...

Here is my blog post about your delicious recipe! http://myrecipejourney-lillian.blogspot.com/2013/02/creamy-crab-pasta.html

Thanks again! =)

Kate said...

OHHHH, I can taste it! Fabulous choice!