Creamy Crab Meat Salad in Belgian Endive Cups
It's January 2nd. A new year has officially begun and I can now say that I've officially survived the holidays. Stressing about finding the perfect gifts for the people I love, juggling time between family and friends, and attending holiday parties -- that's all behind me and I'm ready to jump into 2009. I hope all of you enjoyed the time you spent with your loved ones and are as eager about the new year as I am.
My holiday season began with a couple of days with my boyfriend's family. His mother put us in charge of preparing an appetizer for Christmas Eve dinner, so I tried to replicate a dish that I had at a party thrown my by friend Angelina and her parents: a shrimp salad served in Belgian endive leaves. I've always loved the idea of serving a bite of creamy salad in an endive leaf, so I set out to come up with something similar for Christmas Eve.
But, I couldn't find a shrimp salad recipe out there that sounded like it would turn into what was served at Angelina's party. After thinking a bit, I decided that it might be interesting to prepare the filling for crab rangoon and then place that in an endive leaf. Turns out that was a great idea, and everyone at dinner really enjoyed our appetizer! I started with this crab rangoon recipe and tweaked it.
Additionally, we discovered that the crab meat salad paired really well with Sundried Tomato & Basil Wheat Thins. So, if you have some "leftover" salad after filling the endive leaves, you can serve it with some crackers!
Enjoy!
Creamy Crab Meat Salad in Belgian Endive Cups(adapted from Crab Rangoon recipe by Rhonda Parkinson)
Printable Recipe
INGREDIENTS
INSTRUCTIONS
My holiday season began with a couple of days with my boyfriend's family. His mother put us in charge of preparing an appetizer for Christmas Eve dinner, so I tried to replicate a dish that I had at a party thrown my by friend Angelina and her parents: a shrimp salad served in Belgian endive leaves. I've always loved the idea of serving a bite of creamy salad in an endive leaf, so I set out to come up with something similar for Christmas Eve.
But, I couldn't find a shrimp salad recipe out there that sounded like it would turn into what was served at Angelina's party. After thinking a bit, I decided that it might be interesting to prepare the filling for crab rangoon and then place that in an endive leaf. Turns out that was a great idea, and everyone at dinner really enjoyed our appetizer! I started with this crab rangoon recipe and tweaked it.
Additionally, we discovered that the crab meat salad paired really well with Sundried Tomato & Basil Wheat Thins. So, if you have some "leftover" salad after filling the endive leaves, you can serve it with some crackers!
Enjoy!
Creamy Crab Meat Salad in Belgian Endive Cups(adapted from Crab Rangoon recipe by Rhonda Parkinson)
Printable Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 6-ounce cans canned lump crab meat, drained, flaked, and picked over (reserve liquid after draining)
- 1 tablespoon red onion, minced
- 3/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 scallion (green part only), finely sliced
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Belgian endive (at least 4)
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, crab meat and the reserved liquid, red onion, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, green onion, garlic, Old Bay, salt, and pepper thoroughly until all ingredients are well mixed.
- Right before serving, separate the endive into leaves and arrange on a platter.
- Fill the flat end of the leaf (the white end) with a rounded tablespoon of the crab mixture and serve.
If you liked this post, consider subscribing to Taste As You Go’s RSS feed or signing up for email updates so you don’t miss a thing!
Comments
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year to you, too!