Adventures in Eating: Uncrabby Crab Sandwich

To try and simplify one’s life today takes effort, concentration, careful evaluation, and a diagnosis of one’s status. I don’t mean to get too serious, but as one friend stated it, “Living is hard work!”

Perhaps a good New Year’s resolution would be to cut through the layers of dai­ly life, and selectively give simplifying certain areas a “go”. The house should be cleaned, the laundry awaits, family obli­gations beckon, the car needs servicing, gardeners need to be told how to garden, the working place has its own agenda of glitches, and the list goes on.

Before you realize it, Father Time march­es through the day, and it’s dinnertime! Don’t he tempted to go to a fast food joint. Instead, get yourself some good scraggly English muffins, open up a bottle of superb wine of your choice from WOMC, and slap to­gether one of the following recipes. A hearty steamed veggie along with a salad, and life is already less complicated.

English muffins are a versatile item, not too short and rich, and properly fill­ing. Put your own talents to work, and come up with your own ingenious crea­tion. One of my favorites, is using one of the bottled Classico sauces, mozarella cheese, and any other topping you wish. Broil, and voila! You’ve got the good stuff.

UNCRABBY CRAB SANDWICH

12 oz New York Cheddar (grated)

Dash sugar & pinch of salt

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup crab meat (rinsed and drained)

1 tsp mayonnaise

Dash Worcestershire sauce

Place grated cheese in blender or food processor with milk, sugar and salt. Pro­cess or blend until mixture is smooth. Mix crabmeat with mayonnaise and Wor­cestershire sauce. Split and toast muffins. Spoon the crab mixture onto the muffin. Top with cheese mixture and broil until cheese is golden and bubbly or bake at 375 degrees for 15 min. Leftover cheese mixture will keep in refrigerator for about 1 week. Try chopped leftover chicken mixed with onion, garlic, ground cumin, Jack cheese, and cheddar cheese. The combinations are endless

[Some information I ran across: The Santa Barbara Vintner’s Assoc. has a new updated map of their wine-making re­gion. They will send you a copy: Santa Barbara Vintner’s Asso., P.O. Box WINE Los Olivos, Ca 93441. There are some 22 wineries, and over eight varieties of grapes grown for making wines. Also, you will receive a brochure on recom­mended restaurants. Two given to me were: The Hitching Post (barbequed meats) in Buellton. The other was Ballard Store Restaurant in Ballard, Ca. Both re­staurants are in proximity to where you would be touring to taste and enjoy wines, hospitality and good times.]

Treat yourself, you deserve it!

– Rosemarie