Crab Fondue Recipe for a Romantic Valentine's Dinner

Fondue is a romantic dinner choice for Valentine's Day:  Always impressive, decadently rich and seductively creamy, it provides a sensuous dining experience especially because at some point your hand will inevitably brush your sweetheart's hand as you both simultaneously reach to dip.

The following crab fondue recipe is surprisingly easy to make at home.  The traditional choice of "dipper" is cubed French bread, but you can also thickly slice the bread and spread it with butter or olive oil and then toast under your broiler for some crunch.  Other dipping choices are raw vegetables such as cauliflower, zucchini, broccoli, cherry tomatoes or bell pepper wedges, crostini, homemade potato chips or crisps, fried or broiled sweet potato wedges, and even pita crisps or wedges.

If you wish, you can fry up a couple of slices of bacon to crumble on top of the crab fondue--after all, everything tastes better with bacon, right? And if you both enjoy hot and spicy foods, here's how you can add a little heat to this fondue:  Add a few splashes of Busha Browne's Spicy Hot Pepper Sherry to your empty measuring cup before pouring in the sherry, then add the sherry to make a total of 1/4 cup.  You can also garnish the served fondue with a dash or two of cayenne pepper.

This recipe comes courtesy of one of our newest partners, The Crab Place.

Ingredients
1 pound backfin crab meat
¼ cup sherry
½ cup light cream
6 ounces fondue cheese (e.g., Gruyere, Emmentaler)
1 8-ounce package cream cheese
French bread for dipping

In a fondue pot or the top of a double boiler, combine the cheeses, cream, sherry and seasoning **Note: The original recipe didn't list what seasoning to use, or how much, so I recommend up to 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, and/or a minced clove of garlic, or your favorite fondue seasoning if you have one.**  Stir constantly over medium heat until melted and blended.  Add the crab meat and heat 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Serve hot in a fondue or chafing dish with one inch pieces of French bread. If fondue thickens, stir in a little more cream or sherry.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria

PS:  You can now buy Backfin Crab Meat online when you visit The Crab Place, our recommended source for all your crab meat needs.