Quick--A Recipe

I have several friends who write wonderful food blogs, complete with pictures of delectable things they whip up on a seemly daily basis. Not too infrequently a dish sounds and looks so deliciously good that Casey and Ken end up with a new and exciting taste treat. My friends are good!

Now, I do not have a food blog and there is a good reason for this--I am not a very exciting chef. More often than not I get ahead of myself in a recipe and end up doing something wrong. Detail is not my forte--never has been. Usually the result is edible but not the recipe's intent nor what was expected.

But..the other night we had two huge dungeness crab--a real weakness of ours. Preparation is so simple, crack the shells, get out the mayonnaise and begin to feast. Most special for me is that along with the sumptuous taste comes great memories of long ago years when my dad worked in San Francisco. We loved the nights he would bring home crab and fresh bread from the wharfs--what a treat that was.

This night though there was so much meat that we couldn't finish it all--a situation which I thought was not possible. The next day I turned to my trusty cookbook--the world wide net--and looked for pasta with crab recipes. I figured that I might as well combine two of my favorite foods.

I found one that sounded really really good as it included one of my other favorite foods --asparagus. I made it; it was good; I now share it with you--my contribution to the food blogging world. Unfortunately, being new to this genre, I forgot a cardinal rule--take pictures--so you will need to use your imagination. Judith, Jerry, Palma--I will do better next time.

Quick, Easy-N-Fast Pasta with Crab Meat and Asparagus

2 T. butter
2 T. Extra virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ C dry white wine
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
Pinch of red pepper flakes
¾ lb asparagus, washed, trimmed and sliced diagonally into 2 inch lengths.
¾ lb crab meat, preferably fresh Dungeness
½ C chopped Italian parsley, or a mixture of parsley and another fresh herb such as dill, tarragon, chives or basil
12 oz. fettuccine or other pasta
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2-4 oz freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Heat a large pot of salted water to boiling for the pasta. Heat the butter and EVO in a large skillet or sauté pan and sauté the garlic until it’s translucent. Add the pepper flakes, wine and lemon juice and simmer for about 10 minutes until the liquid is reduced by about half.

Add the asparagus to the pan, cover and steam until it is just tender crisp. Add the crab meat and the lemon zest and toss gently until thoroughly hot.

Meanwhile cook the pasta in the boiling water until barely al dente. Drain and add it to the asparagus mixture, tossing to blend. Toss again with the herbs and transfer to a warmed serving bowl or plates, sprinkle with the cheese and serve immediately.

Yield: 4-6 servings.

From Razzle Dazzle Recipes