With 4th of July BBQ fun right around the corner it is time to plan for portable party pleasers that you can bring to that boat, deck or backyard celebration. This recipe for goat cheese crab dip is something sure to make either your hosts or your guests tastebuds happy.
I just happened to attend my wine club's release party this weekend at Alexandria Nicole winery in Woodinville, Washington. The party featured their newly released wines along with food pairings. At the first station with a lovely and well-balanced Viogner there was a goat cheese and crab dip. For some reason I had never thought of this combination of two things before in my life (goat cheese and crab, not wine a crackers covered in dip).
The goat cheese crab dip combo was really good and stayed on my mind until the next morning when I pulled out the recipe card from my purse as I planned my grocery shopping with 4th of July weekend in mind. Holy cream and cream cheese Batman! I said to myself as I read the recipe. Good thing I just had one cracker full of that lovely stuff that was more heavy cow cream and cream cheese than goat cheese or crab meat.
I decided to rectify that situation with a little Paprika Angel test kitchen magic and make up my very own exceptionally herby tasty version featuring only goat cheese, crab and flavor. This would make the dip close to healthy and safer for those with lactose and/or cow dairy issues.
I started my version with 4 ounces of herb infused chevre from Trader Joe's (any herbal goat chevre will do the trick), and a can of refrigerated lump crab claw meat. You can choose to use fresh crab (which if you have access to I highly recommend) - just DO NOT use shelf stable canned crab meat i.e the kind you find next to the cans of tuna or clams in the canned fish aisle (although it is easier on the budget the preservatives and the canning process ruin the texture, flavor and nutritional quality of the meat - in short it is gross and nothing can be done to make it good).
Other than crab and goat cheese you just need a shallot, a head of garlic, fresh and/or dried tarragon, fresh parsley, dry white wine, a lemon or lemon juice and a couple tablespoons of butter or ghee. The result is a super tasty party pleaser. I recommend serving it with tiny rice crackers.
Tasty Tarragon Crab and Goat Cheese Dip
Recipe makes about 12 ounces of dip - or a medium sized party bowl's worth
4 ounces of herbed goat chevre
8 ounces of chunk crab claw meat
2 Tbsp butter or ghee
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 shallot, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 Tbsp fresh tarragon, finely chopped (or 4 Tbsp dried tarragon)
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
1 Tsp sea salt
1 Tsp fresh ground black pepper
Step 1: Finely chop all of the ingredients and have ready in separate piles.
Step 2: Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a small pan at medium heat. Add the finely chopped shallot and garlic, stir and cook for 2 minutes.
Step 3: Add sea salt and pepper, and stir in. If using dry tarragon - add tarragon now and stir. If using fresh tarragon, wait and add all of the fresh herbs at the same time a little later in the recipe.
Step 4: Add the white wine and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice - stir and reduce the heat just a bit to a very low medium (the 4th notch on your stove dial).
Step 5: When the mixture comes back to a slow simmer add the parsley and fresh tarragon - stir the herbs in vigorously then reduce the heat again to low. Add the goat cheese immediately, cutting and squishing it into the butter/herb mixture until everything is blended and smooth. Turn the heat off.
Step 6: In a seperate bowl squish and seperate the crab meat using your hands. If you are using canned crab squeeze 1/2 of a fresh lemon over the top of it and mix in with your hands (or just pour in an additional 1 Tbsp of lemon juice).
Step 7: Pour the warm goat cheese mixture from the pan over the crab meat. Use a rubber spatula to get all of it out of the pan and then mix the crab and cheese thoroughly together.
Step 8: Let the mixture cool for 10 minutes then cover and place into the refrigerator. When it is fully cold serve or bring to the party of your choice.
Bask in the compliments of your yummy party dip.
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