Garlic Butter Crab Toasts (Printer-friendly)
Golden crispy toasts topped with savory crab and aromatic garlic butter—an impressive yet simple starter
# What You'll Need:
→ Seafood
01 - 7 oz fresh or canned lump crab meat, drained and picked over
→ Bread
02 - 8 slices baguette or sourdough, 1/2 inch thick
→ Garlic Butter
03 - 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
04 - 2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
05 - 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
06 - 1 tsp lemon zest
07 - 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
08 - 1 tbsp chives, finely chopped
09 - 1/4 tsp sea salt
10 - 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
11 - Pinch cayenne pepper
→ Garnish
12 - Extra chopped chives or parsley
13 - Lemon wedges
# How To Make It:
01 - Preheat oven broiler or set to 425°F.
02 - In small bowl, combine softened butter, minced garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, parsley, chives, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Mix until smooth and well combined.
03 - Gently fold crab meat into garlic butter mixture, taking care not to break up lumps.
04 - Arrange bread slices on baking sheet. Toast under broiler or in oven 2-3 minutes per side until golden and crisp.
05 - Spoon crab mixture generously onto each toast. Return to oven and broil 1-2 minutes until just warmed through.
06 - Remove from oven and garnish with extra herbs and squeeze of lemon juice. Serve warm with lemon wedges.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- These toasts come together in under 30 minutes but taste like something from a bistro
- The garlic butter becomes addictive, you will want to put it on everything
02 -
- Broiling happens fast, stand right there and watch because the garlic butter can go from golden to burned in seconds
- These are best eaten within minutes of coming out of the oven, the bread texture does not hold up well
03 -
- Pick through the crab meat with your fingers instead of a fork, you will feel bits of shell that you would otherwise miss
- Room temperature butter spreads more easily and incorporates the other flavors more thoroughly than cold butter