Crab Melts

By Bill Dwyer

Melts are open-face sandwiches, with melted cheese as the common denominator. They are usually made with a meat or seafood salad mixed with cheese. Here is my version of a favourite of ours – the crab melt.

I don’t follow a recipe when I make these, but to write this column and tell you how to make crab melts, I did some measuring as I added ingredient after ingredient. I put each ingredient into a measuring cup without packing them down – just left loose; so keep that in mind as you build your own crab melts. And don’t feel you have to match my measurements exactly – just fairly closely. By the second or third time you make crab melts you probably won’t need to do any measuring.

You can use this recipe to make shrimp, chicken, or even hot-dog melts by substituting the crabmeat.

Ingredients

• 1 six-oz can   crabmeat (Roland white crabmeat is available at Supermas)
• 1 cup               grated radishes
• 1 cup               green onions (scallions), thinly sliced
• ½ cup            celery, finely chopped
• ½ cup            cucumber, finely chopped (seeds and pulp removed, but unpeeled)
• 12                    green olives, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp            fresh parsley, finely chopped
• ¼ cup           mayonnaise
• ¼ cup           Dijon mustard
• salt and white pepper, to taste
• 6 oz                Emmenthal cheese, grated
• 8                      English muffin halves, toasted

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350ºF (175ºC).
2. Open the tin of crabmeat over a sieve. Discard the liquid. Place the crabmeat in a medium-sized bowl.
3. Add the grated radishes to the crabmeat and stir to combine.
4. Add the green onions, celery, cucumber, and parsley. Toss until evenly combined.
5. In a small measuring cup or bowl, mix together the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Using a rubber or silicon spatula, pour the dressing over the crab/veggie mixture and toss thoroughly. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. (At this point you have made a crab salad).
6. Add half of the grated Emmenthal cheese to the salad and stir to thoroughly combine.
7. Pack a mound of the salad/cheese mixture on each of the eight toasted English muffin halves, and place them on baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. (If you want to make fewer than eight melts, you can refrigerate the salad/cheese mixture for later use).
8. Top the melts with the remaining cheese and bake until the cheese is melted and lightly browned on top (about 15 minutes).
9. The melted cheese is very hot so wait a few minutes before serving. Soup is a nice accompaniment.