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beaglesdoitbetter1

Trying to find a recipe: "Crab meats" on rye toast

beaglesdoitbetter1
10 years ago

My mom used to make these delicious appetizers before she died. They were a warm appetizer, with crab meat (possibly imitation or canned crab) with some kind of cheese, served on Rye toast.

I cannot for the life of me find the recipe in any of the cookbooks or online. All of the warm crab and cheese dip recipes I find online are dips and this wasn't really a dip, it was more substance (not soupy) and was cooked in the oven and served on the rye toast points.

I know it's probably a long-shot but I wanted to see if anyone had ever made anything like this and might have a recipe...

Comments (19)

  • cat_mom
    10 years ago

    Could be the recipe my mom and her friends made, but it used English muffins (cut into quarters). The crab mixture was spread on the triangles of Eng muffin, and then flash frozen, stored in baggies in the freezer, and then baked on cookie sheets in the oven for parties and such. The recipe used canned crabmeat, and jarred "Olde English" cheese if I recall.

    I have to run out for an appt but can post the recipe for you later.

  • beaglesdoitbetter1
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    cat_mom, it definitely could have had old english cheese in it! We thought it might be something like that. That would be awesome if you were able to pinpoint it immediately, I've been looking on and off for seven years!!

  • Bunny
    10 years ago

    Oh, I have been on a similar quest for a crab mixture on English muffins. It was my mom's recipe that she made for her ladies' luncheons. It was definitely canned crab, used mayo as a binder, green onions and, I think, chopped hard-boiled egg. I don't remember any cheese. It went under the broiler and got bubbly-divine. It was a big hit with my roommates in college.

    Usually I can find any recipe online, but not this one. It's really not an appetizer, more a light meal.

  • CEFreeman
    10 years ago

    My mom used to make something like this?
    God bless BH&G & Betty Crocker!

    Old English Cheese
    Worstershire sauce
    finely minced scallion
    dash of lemon juice
    her recipe called for lump and back-fin crab. (the "meats" to which you're referring?) She fussed because she didn't get the difference and she mashed them up anyway. Oh..! Now we know.
    A tiny bit of mayo.

    She's toast rye bread & point it, then butter it. She'd put the crab/cheese mix on top and broil it. The mayo would brown a bit before the cheese, which prevented the crab from burning.

    She'd top it with that exotic spice (for a Midwesterner) Old Bay. TOOOOO spicy for this non-fish-eating mom!

    She'd also make this recipe with frozen Alaskan King Crab, sometimes diced shrimp, and sometimes just diced veggies, par boiled first. Not too soft. The latter was usually on English muffins mimicking a dish from the Perry Davis Hotel in Traverse City, MI. We LOVED that.

    Sound possible?

  • beaglesdoitbetter1
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    CEFreeman my mo's definitely did not have Worstershire sauce, nor did it have scallions on it or shrimp. Although that recipe sounds good :)

    linelle, maybe you'll find your recipe in this thread too! The power of garden web is amazing :)

  • raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
    10 years ago

    I have never encountered this recipe, so I am no help --

    but I also have a recipe that my mom made in the late 60's that my SIL and I have been looking for, for years. It was a "seafood casserole", and all I can remember of it is it had rice, cream of celery soup, diced celery, and little shrimps (and maybe other seafood too, but don't clearly remember). Maybe water chestnuts too? Sound familiar, anyone?

    Don't want to thread hijack, but since we are on the topic of lost recipes, it occurred to me that someone might know this one.

  • CEFreeman
    10 years ago

    Guys, the plural of crab meat is crab meat.
    The plural of shrimp is shrimp.
    The plural of meat (the animal kind) is meat.
    The plural of fruit (the eating kind) is fruit.

    Beagles, my mom's just had a dash of the Worstershire, and the shrimp were actually another variation when she didn't do crab meat. The shells of the crab meat, which I now know were blue crab, made her sick.

    Back then, not knowing how to cook seafood, she also boiled the shrimp for 20 minutes. Funny, though. Everyone in that neck of the woods must, too, 'cause they were always the first to be gone.

    Come to think of it, she hated making the Thanksgiving turkey. Couldn't stand to stick her hand inside there to clean it out. I'd forgotten that's why I always made Thanksgiving!

    Raee, that recipe sounds like real comfort food. The kind from the red & black Betty Crocker! :)

  • Bunny
    10 years ago

    Christine, yes, worcestershire sauce. I just can't picture any cheese.

    Beagles, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

  • raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
    10 years ago

    Christine, I have my mom's red and black cookbook here somewhere -- I will get it out and look!

  • cat_mom
    10 years ago

    Here you go beagles!

    Hot Crabmeat Canape
    1 can crabmeat, drained; 1 jar Kraft Old English Sharp Cheese; 1 stick margarine; 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder; 2 TBS mayonnaise; 3 TBS Red Sherry; 8 English muffins.

    Mix ingred. into smooth consistency. Cut muffins in quarters. Spread mixture on muffins. Flash freese, then store in plastic bags (in freezer).

    To serve: Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 15-18 min. or until edges brown.

    I haven't made these in YEARS, but my aunt and cousin make/serve them every year as just one "snicky-snack" (among many!) prior to dinner on Thanksgiving. I always scarf down a few! Yum!

  • louisianapurchase
    10 years ago

    Hi Beagles,

    This probably isn't the recipe you are looking for, but I knew I had a recipe in a cookbook here that sounded similar: Crabmeat Toast Rounds

    1 lb. crabmeat
    2 green onions, chopped
    1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
    6 Tablespoons mayo
    Creole seasoning
    1 1/2 loaves bread, cut into 11/2 inch bread rounds*

    *may use English muffins that have been quartered.

    Combine all ingredients and mix well. Place 1 tablespoon on each bread round. Bake in 450 degree oven for 8 minutes.

  • deedles
    10 years ago

    How does one "flash freeze"? Well, I could just set it outside today, but what the heck? Was Betty Crocker selling 'flash freezers' back then or something?

    All these versions sound pretty good, too. Maybe I'll try them sometime.

  • beaglesdoitbetter1
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    LOL CEFreeman, grammar police :) When my mom served them, she always called them "crab meatS" and I wasn't sure if that was the official title of the recipe or not.

    Thank you cat_mom and louisianapurchase. Either of those recipes sound like they potentially could be right (no creole seasoning though in my mom's). I'm going to try to make cat_mom's first and then louisianapurchase's to see which one gets closer to what my mom's tasted like. I am so happy to have found recipes that could work!

    raee maybe start your own thread with a "lost recipe- seafood casserole" and someone will come along with your answer? We could all be reunited with our childhood favorite foods thanks to the brilliant minds on GW!

  • cat_mom
    10 years ago

    Flash freezing means placing in a single layer on a tray or cookie sheet or whatever will fit in your freezer, and then place in the freezer until frozen. Once frozen, you can stack/store in a freezer bag or Tupperware container or whatever, until ready to bake.

  • louisianapurchase
    10 years ago

    It's funny you mention the creole seasoning. I started to type in my original post that I felt like that would make it different from the original but thought it still might be close otherwise. I knew someone posted one further up with Old Bay so I thought the original may have contained Old Bay or something like it. If you are in Florida now, you probably have access to Tony's (Tony Cacheres).

  • Bunny
    10 years ago

    Flash freezing is what I do when I make pies. They would smoosh if I wrapped them unbaked, but frozen it's not a problem.

    Just because you were all wondering: If you make a batch of chocolate chip cookies and bake them (heresy, I know), and are afraid of eating them all until you keel over. You don't have to flash freeze them. Just put them in a ziplock bag and you can fish them out one at a time and eat them frozen, a true heavenly delight.

  • deedles
    10 years ago

    Oh, I do that with produce from the garden. From now on I'm going to call it "flash freezing the cherries" or whatever.

  • CEFreeman
    10 years ago

    Baking cookies, Linelle. Shame shame shame.

    If someone entitled a post "seafoods casserole" you'd at least get me. Without a thing to offer.

    Interestingly, both those crab recipes sound fantastic. Such comfort food and every housewife had the recipes 'cause everyone had The Book. I got mine in 1966. I was 8. My mom's is from sometime in the 50s.

    I'm saving this thread. I might actually cook something.

  • CEFreeman
    10 years ago

    I was just thinking about flash freezing.
    Bell peppers freeze well. Dice 'em up and lay 'em out on a cookie sheet. Freeze them.
    Stuffed peppers, too. Make your peppers but don't precook the pepper cups. The freezing action makes them tender.
    You can do this with onions, green beans, peas, garlic, parsnips & carrots you need to par boil.
    Potatoes, turnips & rutabagas get mealy.

    I think a big vat of English beef stew is order. mmmm Rutabagas!