Crab and Shrimp Bundles

Hello Everyone,

I'm sharing our Christmas Eve dinner recipe with you.  I combined two recipes and came up with this winner.

Begin by making the crab cakes.  Here in California, Christmas coincides with Dungeness crab season, but not this year.  The season has been delayed due to the migration of the humpback whales from becoming entrapped in the traps and buoy lines of the fishermen.  So, I will be using canned crab this year.  I purchase the large cans of crab claw meat in the refrigerated section of the meat department.  The cans are pricey but worth it.

Cape Fear Crab Cakes with Lemon Dill Sauce

1-pound fresh lump crab meat
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 scallion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper
3 tablespoons whipping cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon each minced fresh basil and parsley
1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumbs (I use Panko)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons each butter and vegetable oil

- Flake the crab meat and remove bits of shell and cartilage.
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet. Add the garlic, scallion and red pepper.
- Sauté for 2 minutes or until tender. Stir in the whipping cream, mustard and cayenne, ½ cup of the  breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and the crab meat and mix lightly.
- Shape into 16 patties - 2 inches in diameter.

Lemon Dill Sauce
¾ cup mayonnaise
½ cup buttermilk
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dillweed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

-Blend the mayonnaise and buttermilk in a bowl until smooth. Add the garlic, dillweed, parsley, lemon peel and lemon juice and mix well.
- Chill, covered, in the refrigerator until the mixture thickens.

Here is step #2.  Place a piece of smoked applewood bacon on the foil-lined baking sheet.  Place two large cleaned and shelled shrimp side by side on the bacon.  I sprinkle the shrimp with seasoned pepper.

Place a crabcake on top of the shrimp.

I forgot to take a picture of laying two more shrimp on top of the crabcake!  Then wrap the bacon over the crab cake and shrimp and secure with a toothpick.

Here are the bundles ready to pop into the oven.  I sprinkled paprika over the bundles.  I had a bit of shredded gouda cheese, so I sprinkled that on top too.  That is optional.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.  Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes.  Serve with the lemon dill sauce.

I like this recipe a lot for two reasons.  It is delicious!  I can make it ahead of time and pop it in the oven while we are enjoying appetizers with a glass of wine.  I serve it with a salad and some sourdough bread, and we are in culinary heaven!

Even though I haven't been posting, I have been very busy making some of the blocks for my new block of the month which will be rolled out in July.  It sounds so far away, but I have to have the quilt finished by the middle of February and ship it off to New York for a photoshoot. I wish I could show you what I've been making, but you will just have to wait and be surprised.  

Mr. Joe had another CT scan last week and we met with his pulmonologist to go over the results.  His pulmonologist appears to be about 13 years old and is just as nice and knowledgeable as he can be.  He told us they brought in a hot-shot radiologist to read the results of the scan.  There are hundreds of tiny nodules in the bottom part of his lungs which are starting to calcify.  The radiologist compared this CT scan to the first scan from September, and there was no change.  That's a good sign and eliminates the big "C" diagnosis.  They think the nodules might be from something he aspirated.  Mr. Joe now has an inhaler which he needs to use when he has difficulty breathing.

Last week we had quite a bit of snow, so out came the snowblower.  I push the shovel around and try to look busy while keeping an eye on Mr. Joe while he uses the snowblower.  He felt so good he cleared our driveway and the neighbor's driveway because he knew they were coming up from the city for the week.  He did all of this without using the inhaler!  There are other days when he can't walk 20 yards without sounding like a locomotive chugging along.  These episodes are few and far between, but they scare me when they happen.  Now, when we are out and about, I carry the inhaler in my purse.

Our granddaughter is flying home for Christmas from college in Arizona.  She wants to have some cabin time, so she, our grandson and son arrive this Thursday for a few days.  

I know you are all just as busy as I am with only 5 days left before Christmas.  I appreciate the time you took to read through this post over you morning cup of coffee, or tea.  

Soon,

Lynn