If you’re having a small New Year’s gathering (or if it’s just the two of you), I’ve got a great suggestion: King Crab Legs with Drawn Butter.

Easy. Elegant. Oh, yes, a bit expensive (which makes it extra special!).

King Crab is sweet and delicious, and unless you live in Alaska or further up north, it’s already cooked (and frozen) when you buy it. All you have to do is thaw, reheat and eat!

There are several ways to prepare King Crab, but I like to steam-reheat them in the oven. For a step-by-step tutorial on how to do it, click here.

Because this is a special night, I like to serve them with drawn butter (also called clarified butter). Drawn butter is butter that has been melted with the milk solids removed. You can also season it with herbs or lemon juice if you like. Drawn butter is also great to drizzle onto steamed vegetables.

Here’s a step-by-step tutorial for How To Make Drawn Butter:

Clarified Butter

prep: 5 minutes
cook: 15 minutes

serves 6, 2 tablespoons each

you’ll need… 

½ pound butter

let’s get to it…

1. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan on low heat.

2. Milk solids (in the form of white foam) will cloud the top: DO NOT STIR.

3. When butter is completely melted and small bubbles  begin to form around the edge, turn off heat. Let stand 3 minutes.

4. With a small ladle or spoon, skim off the milk solids.

5. You’ve made drawn butter! Try not to disturb any milk solids remaining on the bottom of the saucepan when you pour it bowls for dipping the crab.

 

For more Kitchen How-To and Tips, Check out my Extra Helpings Tab!

 

It’s Spring, yes, but it’s still chilly enough to need something hearty for dinner, so here it is: Baked Ziti with Mini Meatballs.

I love this recipe because you can use shortcuts (pasta sauce from a jar, frozen meatballs), or take your time and make the sauce from scratch and hand-shape your own meatballs. Either way, you’ll come up with something hot, cheesy and delicious.

I made my meatballs from scratch using ground beef, veal and pork… but you can use any combination (turkey? chicken? lamb?). Remember a little bit of fat in your mixture means more flavor in your meatballs.

If you do make your meatballs from scratch, here’s a great idea: double the recipe, make extra meatballs and freeze them. Then all you’ll have to do is thaw them for a quick dinner (Meatball Sandwiches, Spaghetti and Meatballs, Meatball Appetizers) when you’re in a hurry!

 

We fancy! Lobster is cheap right now, so we’re whipping up Lobster Deviled Eggs!

Cheap lobster you say? Yep, you bet. For a variety of reasons, there’s an overabundance of lobsters, so prices are falling. Costco, Sam’s Club and Walmart are selling frozen lobster tails and cooked claws at amazingly low prices.

And… if you really want to indulge yourself, pick up some live lobsters. Scared to try? Don’t be… here’s what you need to know.

So splurge this weekend and give it a shot! I’ve got a step-by-step how-to-do-it below the recipe. If Lobster Deviled Eggs aren’t your thing, buy the lobster tails anyway, prepare as directed in the recipe below and just dip them into warm melted butter.

Look who’s fancy now!

Step-by-Step Lobster Deviled Eggs

1. Gather your ingredients: 8 eggs; 1 8-ounce lobster tail, thawed; 1 teaspoon seasoning (like Old Bay); 3 tablespoons mayonnaise;  1 teaspoons Dijon mustard; 2 teaspoons lemon juice; ½ teaspoon salt (or more to taste); 3 tablespoons finely chopped celery; 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives (plus a little extra for garnish).

2. Boil the eggs. If you’re not sure how to do it, click here. Cool, peel and set aside.

3. Cut lengthwise through the top of the lobster tail all the way down to the tail with a pair of kitchen shears.

4. Reach inside the shell and loosen and pull the meat away from the shell (don’t remove the meat… the shell is the little oven that gives the lobster flavor); set aside.

5. Fill a saucepan with about ½ inch water and add the seasoning.

6. Place a steamer into the pan and bring to a boil. Place lobster tail on the steamer in the saucepan.

7. Cover and steam for 12 to 15 minutes or until the meat is no longer opaque.

8. Remove lobster tail from pan and cool completely. Pull meat from the shell and chop into ½-inch pieces (you’ll get about 5 ounces of meat); set aside.

9. Carefully slice the boiled eggs lengthwise. Wipe your knife off on a damp paper towel in between eggs so you don’t get yolk all over the egg halves. Place the yolks in a large bowl.

10. Slice off a tiny sliver on the bottom of each egg white so they don’t wobble on the plate; set aside.

11. Add mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice and salt. Mash the mixture with a potato masher. Taste and adjust the seasonings. I don’t add a lot of mustard because I don’t like to lose the lobster flavor.

12. Gently fold in the celery, chives and lobster. Taste the mixture and adjust the seasonings. Sometimes a shake of Old Bay is needed.

Spoon the Deviled Lobster mixture evenly into each egg white half. Sprinkle on the remaining chives (or get creative). Cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Here are some terrific Chocolate Dipping Tips (and an easy recipe) if you want to create Valentine’s Day enchantment!

What to Dip

Fresh Fruit:

• Make sure it’s fresh and ripe. Even the richest chocolate can’t hide the sour taste of an unripe, mid-winter strawberry.
• Remove the fruit from the fridge about 10 minutes before dipping in order to take the chill off and prevent the chocolate coating from cracking.
• The fruit needs to be absolutely dry and free of moisture before dipping.

Nuts:

• Whole or halved nuts work best, but sliced almonds, or pecan pieces are great, too. Put them in small clumps on a parchment  paper-lined baking sheet and spoon on the melted chocolate.
• If you’re buying a large bag of nuts from a big-box store, taste them as soon as you’ve purchased them. If they taste stale, take them back!

Other Dip-ables:

• Pretzels, potato chips and other salty junk food can bring a delicious balance to the sweetness of the chocolate. If you’re buying these in a super-sized quantity, make sure they are fresh!
• Bacon! Thick cut bacon works best. Fry it until very crispy. Cool completely before dipping.
• Marshmallows and cookies.
• Dried fruit. Apricots, pineapple and apples are addictive.
• Zucchini. I’m not kidding. Slice fresh zucchini sticks and dip them in powdered sugar… then into chocolate. Amazing.

Chocolate Dipping Tips:

• Water or moisture in your chocolate will cause it to “seize.” This means it will get hard, crumbly and grainy.
• Chocolate that gets too hot will also seize. That’s why you need to melt chocolate slowly and at the lowest possible heat until smooth.
• If chocolate seizes, blend in 1 tablespoon shortening for every 4-ounces of chocolate and stir constantly until the chocolate is smooth again.
• Chocolate bars and squares are best for melting. They put additives in chocolate chips so the chips will keep their shape. You want the best and purest chocolate you can afford with only these ingredients: cocoa beans, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin (an emulsifier) and vanilla.
• Chocolate should be warm (not hot!) and have a thin consistency so it gently coats what you’re dipping. If it’s too cool it will be thick and ugly.
•  Use a potato masher to dip fruit, pretzels or cookies in hot melted chocolate.
• Don’t waste the last bit of chocolate in the pan! Spoon the remaining chocolate into a plastic re-sealable bag and seal. Snip off a tiny piece from the bottom corner and drizzle it over anything still left to dip!
• Cool your dipped items on a tray lined with parchment paper.
• After coating the goodies, tightly wrap the chocolate and store it in a cool, dry place. You can also refrigerate for up to 2-days.