Truly Addictive, Lobster, Shrimp or Crab Dip, hot or cold.
These are a few of my favorite things ♪♫♪♫
I came up with this dip after tasting the normal crab dip of 8oz cream cheese, 1 can of crab and one garlic clove. Since I make outstanding crab stuffed mushrooms I adapted my recipe to a crab dip. This makes a truly addictive crab dip that is suitable for any type of party. For a formal party, bake the dip and then put beautifully formed scoops of dip on individual plates and serve with points of toast. For super bowl just put it on the table and watch it disappear. Use it to fill cream cheese pastry tarts or bake it on top of cod, haddock or fresh salmon. (Called ‘Heaven on a plate’ by Tiffany Eddy when on NH's ABC WMUR's Cooks Corner.)
One of my July 2016 recipes for Beyond Celiac - originally National Foundation for Celiac Awareness.
1 x 8 oz (250g) block of cream cheese, softened - lite is fine
2 x 6 oz cans of crab well drained or use 8 oz (250g) fresh or frozen, thawed crab, or 8 oz cooked salad shrimp not from a can or cooked lobster. Easily double for 4th July or summer party and do a mix of seafood. Choose a decent brand of crab, preferably better quality not the cheapest. Costco carries a fabulous can of crab but it’s $20 per pound, but worth it for the taste. Splurge for 4th July. Do not use the imitation seafood as most is not gluten free.
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely crushed
2 Tbsp (30 ml) butter or oil
2 Tbsp (30 ml) gf Ranch or Italian dressing - gives flavor without fuss
½ c (2oz, 56 g) finely shredded Swiss cheese or smoked Gouda– store brand is fine
zest and juice of ½ lemon or less – optional, it gives a definite lemon flavor which I love but husband notices
½ c chopped fresh parsley
few drops Tabasco or other hot sauce
paprika (just for color) and parsley to garnish
Note no salt is added
1. Melt the butter or oil in a small non stick pan and gently cook onion and garlic covered until they are soft and colorless. This can also be done in the microwave in the same bowl you mix dip in. I use a 4 cup (1 ltr) Pyrex jug.
2. Chop parsley and then mix all ingredients together in a bowl. You can use the food processor but it makes a very smooth dip.
3. Turn into an attractive container of about 1 quart/1 litre capacity.
4. Sprinkle with paprika and bake in preheated 350F/180C oven for about 20 minutes until the dip is bubbling. OR just serve cold.
5. Remove from oven, let cool for about 5 minutes, garnish with more chopped or whole parsley and serve with crackers with a small knife for spreading.
It is also good once it cools down so people will still keep eating it. It does stiffen on cooling.
Since everything is cooked once you have cooked the onion and garlic, you can cheat and zap dish in microwave until bubbling, stir well and then sprinkle on paprika and parsley.
Ideas:
I like to add about 1 tbsp of melted hot pepper jelly to give a slight bite without crunch of raw jalapeño, add some chopped basil, mix in ready made pesto, a few chopped artichokes, cooked fresh asparagus tips. Leftovers, if there are any, can be melted with some milk as sauce for fish, rice or pasta.
Spice it up with more heat, cilantro for Mexican flare.
