Time to go a little crab crazy!

When the summer sun pushes us out of our nest to travel the Southeast barrier islands from St. Augustine to the North Carolina’s Outer Banks, my culinary imagination awakens to our “roving season” and a rush of warm crab dip dreams! Quiet docks turn into lively stages for the timeless ritual of fishing and blue crab crabbing … gatherings of nets, strings and feasting. For me, it’s a daily vacation ceremony to discover an unexpected “winner.” This has become a summertime gastronomic adventure that always ends with carrying home a little box of recipes, photos and stories about the chefs and servers we have met along the way.

I left home, the car packed with very few garments, great beach sandals and an appetite knowing that I’ll be gaining at least five pounds from warm crab dip that begins every dinner along with a regionally inspired beverage. This year, the rich aromas and creative bourbon cocktails seemed to pair beautifully with each bubbly, cheesy, creamy, luscious crab dip ordered. And no matter the restaurant or destination, there wasn’t one menu where the crab dip appetizer was missing from each bill o’ fare!

From tablecloth fine dining to local fish camps, from hotel 5-star chefs to country cooks, the summer selections were spontaneous and unexpected. Somehow, this road trip began with my childhood images of mother and dad dressed up — the ladies wearing twirly skirts and bouffant hairdos sipping a sloe gin fizz and the gentlemen toasting with scotch and martinis. The celebration always featured a decadent seafood dip prior to the “big event” of Jersey shore seafood indulgences. A good party was all about great conversation and a summertime appetizing bite that I’ll never forget. Even the hand-buttered toasted breads rivaled the crab dip!

A rabid collector of vintage cookbooks, I still cherish my favorite old recipe binder from mother and her post WWII girlfriends whose calendars were dotted with dinner party notes and keepsake recipes. Coincidentally, there were more entries for pound cakes and “summertime crab dip” than any other categories. I inherited the impulsiveness of cooking but always found inspiration for sherry, rum or bourbon-encouraged excitement. Who doesn’t guard their recipes like heirloom antiques? Home cooks might swear by a hot, heavy iron skillet bake or prefer a refreshing chilled blue crab dip with authentic seafood spice like Old Bay, adding the chunks of sweet fresh crab meat at the very end! To me, the secret is balancing a seasoned, rich cream base bubbly from the oven with a mélange of cheeses and sherry!

Back to basics and being crab crazy, one of the great things about catching your own bounty is that you don’t need to have a boat if you live on the East Coast. Tie a piece of old raw chicken on a string and walk out onto a dock, pier or any shallow bay (like Shallowbag Bay in the Outer Banks of North Carolina or the marshy roadway out to East Beach on St. Simons Island, Georgia) and there’s a good chance a summertime blue claw crab will find it. If you have a giant crab trap that you can fill with a few pieces of smelly old raw chicken, you can toss the entire wire trap into the waters and wait until morning. Imagine the hours ahead after steaming or boiling the crabs and working on taking the prized crabmeat out of the shell. For the faint of heart, contact your local fish market and, believe me, it’s worth the price for a 1 lbs. container of fresh lump crabmeat. You’ll find that making your crab dip becomes a treasured dish every season — and not just during the summertime.

Exploring the abundance of regional hot crab dip recipes, you might settle on a chilled variety or the simple-to-prepare hot version that will probably create your obsession. There are hundreds; consider Hot Cheddar Maryland style, Cajun and Crunchy, Classic & Spicy or Hot Butter & Jumbo Crab (you don’t need to dip with this one). Just savor the drawn butter sweetness. Remember that many dips are low carb, gluten free and keto friendly.

Here are some hints:

• Use high-quality crab meat and skip the tins in your supermarket.

• Ignore bagged cheeses and buy blocks of fresh cheese (like Swiss) and shred it yourself.

• Bake your crab dip in a shallow dish, which gives you a finished presentation with more dippable areas for your toasted crumb toppings.

• You can prepare your crab dip up to three days ahead of time and then bring to room temperature before baking.

• The best cheeses to consider are cream cheese for a rich base, with Swiss, gruyere or sharp cheddar mixed in and then melted on top for a savory flavor.

• All ingredients can be stirred together in a large bowl or in a standard mixed on “low,” then spooned into your favorite casserole dish and baked.

• Make sure you add the crab last, and don’t overmix. You want to keep some of the large crab chunks whole and not shredded.

READY FOR A RECIPE?

• 1 pound lump crab meat, about 3 cups

• 2 T. butter

• ½ C. finely minced shallots

• 2 cloves minced garlic

• 4 small green onions finely chopped

• ½ C. Mayonnaise (not the sweet brand)

• 2 8-oz. packages cream cheese, room temperature

• 1 t. Old Bay seasoning

• 7 oz. shredded Swiss Cheese, about 2.5 Cups

• 2-3 T. crunchy bread crumbs — or crackers — Panko

• 2 T. finely chopped parsley (garnish)

• OPTIONAL: Add in ¼ C. tiny pieces of chopped cooked shrimp or cooked chopped tiny pieces of bacon (drained)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 F.

• Pick through the fresh crabmeat for shells and separate into easy to sprinkle pieces

• Melt the butter in small pan with shallots and garlic. Cook only 2-3 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat.

• In a large bowl, blend cream cheese, lemon juice and mayonnaise until smooth. Mix in sauteed shallots and green onions, plus Old Bay Seasoning.

• Gently mix in Swiss cheese and lump crab meat.

• Spread in the shallow baking dish and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

• Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

• Serve crab dip with crackers, crispy baguette, toasted pita bread or your favorite “dipper”!

If crabbing, picking crab or eating crab is a passion, consider hosting a competitive Crab Dip Contest. It might become a family tradition. Or plan a day when you cover a picnic table with brown butcher paper, dump the freshly steamed crabs onto the table, find your little wooden crab or lobster mallets and enjoy the long summer evening with people you love. Bon appetit, y’all!