Susie’s Crab Casserole

November 12, 2009 · Filed Under Friday Foodie Fix, Holiday Food Fest, bread, dairy free, easy, entree, gluten free, recipe · 26 Comments 

Crab Casserole 037

This post is linked to Friday Foodie Fix–Crab.

Today is week 2 of the Holiday Food Fest. The sweet and talented Alta of Tasty Eats at Home is hosting this week’s theme of Fall Dishes.  To me, Fall + Holiday = Thanksgiving. When you set aside the turkey, ham, side dishes, and desserts,  Thanksgiving and all the special dinners during the holiday season mean one dish for sure—my sister’s Crab Casserole.

Where I live in Virginia—in King George county, which borders the Potomac River—we are lovers of all things crab. Specifically, we love the Maryland blue crab. We eat our first steamed crabs usually in April or May and we don’t stop eating them until late October. We have many fond memories of Indian summers spent eating steamed crabs on the picnic table on the porch or under a shade tree, spectacular in its fall foliage. Mr. GFE fondly refers to the blue crab as the elusive crustacean. It’s not uncommon for folks to have one or two crab pots set out in the Potomac or one of its tributaries. They steam a bushel of crabs every weekend during the summer. If you’re lucky, these crabbers are either your family or your friends. Others are sure to visit their local waterman and/or seafood dealer for a bushel of crabs hot off the cooker for Memorial Day, Father’s Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, and just about any celebration that occurs during crab season. Crabs are meant for both celebrating and socializing—so crabs equal good times.

So what do we do when colder weather arrives and crab picking season ends? Do we give up crabmeat for 6 months? Heavens, no. We make dishes that contain crabmeat that we’ve picked and frozen during the summer, or we head back to our local waterman/seafood dealer and buy a pound or two of crabmeat that he’s picked and frozen for the winter. I’m in that latter category, although I do remember one winter when we feasted on flounder stuffed with crabmeat several times. We’d caught the flounder while fishing in the Chesapeake Bay off my parents’ summer home. We always caught and ate crabs when visting there, too. That particular occasion, I had picked enough crabmeat to stuff the flounder before freezing. Those stuffed flounder made for an exceptional meal in January when the cold north wind was howling.

My sister found this crab casserole recipe many years ago now that’s become a winter season favorite. She makes it gluten free for me by just replacing wheat bread with gluten-free bread. I started making it myself for those holiday meals with Mr. GFE’s side of the family. I’ve made it with all kinds of gluten-free bread, both store-bought loaf bread and from “bread” I’ve made, like cornbread or corn muffins. It was in this dish that I originally used Van’s frozen gluten-free waffles as a substitute for gluten-free bread. One Thanksgiving morning when I went to put together my casserole, I realized I hadn’t bought any gluten-free bread in preparation. I remembered that I had the waffles in the freezer, toasted two, crumbled them, and then threw them in with the other ingredients. I was worried how the casserole would turn out, but everyone said it was the best crab casserole ever. So, you really can’t go wrong with whatever gluten-free bread you use in this recipe.

 

Crab Casserole 019

 

Crab Casserole 032-1

Crab Casserole 044

Susie’s Crab Casserole
( Click here for a print version of this recipe. )

Serves 8
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Baking time: 40 minutes
Oven temperature: 350 degrees Fahrenheit

1 pound crab meat (Susie says to use backfin, but I use the “special,” which is a mix of backfin, and leg and claw meat—it’s much more reasonably priced, although crabmeat is pricey)

½ cup milk (or non-dairy equivalent)

3 slices of bread (I use gluten-free bread, like tapioca loaf, or 1 ½ to 2 Van’s gluten-free waffles; you need about one cup of your fresh bread “crumbs.”)

1 ½ – 2 tbsp prepared mustard (I use Dijon)

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I use Lea & Perrins)

¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter or non-dairy equivalent, melted (this is half the original amount and you might even cut back a little more)

3 eggs, slightly beaten

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 ½ tsp – 1 tbsp Old Bay seasoning (or similar, to taste)

Paprika (for sprinkling on top)

Beat eggs slightly in bowl.

Crumble bread into pieces; add to eggs in bowl.

Pour milk over bread, and gently stir all together.

Add and mix all ingredients (except paprika).

Pour into a lightly greased casserole dish (about 1 ½ qts).

Sprinkle with paprika.

Bake until knifes comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

Adapted from the V.I.P. Cookbook: A Potpourri of Virginia Cooking, Vol. 7

holiday-food-fest

Don’t forget to check out all the Fall Dishes over at Alta’s Tasty Eats At Home! The giveaway this week is a really fun apron from Flirty Aprons. Too late to get in on this week’s roundup? No worries … next week is another theme, and one you won’t want to miss—Gifts of Good Taste! This event is hosted by Phoebe at Cents to Get Debt Free, so please share your favorite edible gifts. Phoebe will be giving away a Digital Precision Pro Kitchen Scale—nice! 

By the way, Mr. GFE is loving this Holiday Food Fest event … he usually doesn’t get to enjoy Susie’s Crab Casserole this early in the fall! He was practically following me around the kitchen waiting for it to be ready! I have to admit that it was also nice to get out my very special handmade pottery that my dear friend, Cindi, gave me years ago. It’s really too pretty and special to only use one time each year … it’s a fir tree after all—aren’t fir trees around all year long?

Crab Casserole 028

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe! 

Related Posts with Thumbnails

Tags: , , , , , ,

About Me

Shirley BradenGluten free since June 2003, I lead a celiac/gluten intolerance group in Virginia. My passion is educating folks on gluten issues and showing how eating gluten free can be easy if you focus on “real” foods versus processed and specialty foods.

Email me

GFE's Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, but rather a volunteer sharing my experiences. Consult your physician for medical guidance. To the best of my knowledge, all ingredients/products that I use are gluten-free (even if I do not indicate that each and every time I mention them; e.g., if I refer to "soy sauce," it's a gluten-free soy sauce). However, I take no responsibility for the accuracy of that information. Always read labels and verify the gluten-free status of any ingredients/products to your own comfort level.

Not just gf, but gfe!