Dungeness Crab Souffle Recipes

Steps:

• Crabs: Depending on where you get the crabs they could be alive or preboiled.
• If they're alive, place the crabs in boiling water for 5 minutes (until red in color). Remove from pot and cool them in iced water (quick cool). With your thumb and index finger pry open the head, remove innards and save. Under running water wipe clean the head area.
• Crab innards: In a blender add the innards with 1/4 cup of white wine, blend on pulse, strain, and save.
• In a pot on medium heat add olive oil, shallots, rosemary, thyme, and peppercorns. Cook until light brown, about 5 minutes. Deglaze with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of wine. Add the blended crab innards, the canola oil, and the garlic salt. Simmer for 10 minutes. Skim the top, remove from the heat and cool for a few minutes. Strain through a sieve or cheesecloth. Whisk in the garlic puree and let rest.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place the 2 crabs in a large oven-proof skillet, ladle the crab butter over them, (be generous) and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Set the crabs on your serving dish, sprinkle with garlic salt, put the empty head shells back on (you can brush the shell with olive oil to shine) sprinkle. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Steps:

• Set the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the base: Melt 3 Tbsp of butter in a sauce pan. Add 3 Tbsp of flour, and stir until completely mixed. Add 1 can (8 oz) of shrimp bisque soup, 1 jigger dry sherry, 1 Tbsp dry mustard, and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to a slow simmer, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Allow to cool, 5 to 10 minutes. Beat the 3 egg yolks until lemony. Add the yolks to the mixture slowly, stirring constantly. Set aside. Prepare the crab: Remove all meat from the shell, leaving pieces as intact as possible. Prepare the egg whites: Beat the egg whites until stiff. Final assembly: Add the beaten egg whites to the mixture, being careful not to stir them too much. Use a 2 1/2 quart oven proof casserole. You will prepare 3 layers of bread, crab meat, cheese,and base mixture. For each layer, place one third of the bread strips in the casserole. Then add one third of the crab meat, and one third of the base mixture, and one third of the cheese. Bake at 350 for one hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes).

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter a 8 cup souffle dish.
• Toast coconut in a non-stick skillet over low heat.
• In a medium skillet, melt butter over low heat and add the celery, garlic, curry powder, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper - cook for 3 minutes. Stir in flour until smooth for about 1 minute. Pour in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Set aside and cool slightly. Whisk the egg yolks one at a time into the sauce. Stir in coconut and crab meat.
• In medium bowl, beat egg whites and lemon juice with a mixer until stiff, but not dry. Stir 1/4 of the whites into crab mixture. Quickly and gently fold in the remaining whites. Do not deflate the volume. Transfer mixture to the souffle dish and place it on a rack at the bottom of the oven.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden, puffed and still moist inside.

Steps:

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400°F. Butter one 10-cup soufflé dish or six 1 1/4-cup soufflé dishes; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to coat. (If using 1 1/4-cup dishes, place all 6 on rimmed baking sheet.) Combine crab, shrimp, roasted peppers and tarragon in processor; chop finely, using on/off turns.
• Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, shallot and cayenne. Cook without browning until mixture begins to bubble, whisking constantly, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, then wine. Cook until smooth, thick and beginning to boil, whisking constantly, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix yolks and salt in bowl. Add yolk mixture all at once to sauce; whisk in quickly. Stir in crab mixture. Using electric mixer, beat whites in large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of whites into lukewarm soufflé base to lighten. Fold in 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, then remaining whites. Transfer soufflé mixture to prepared dish.
• Place soufflé in oven. Bake soufflé until puffed, golden and gently set in center, about 40 minutes for large soufflé (or 25 minutes for small soufflés). Using oven mitts, transfer soufflé to platter and serve immediately.