Crab Dip Gratin

Total Time: 50 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup shallot, finely minced
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, pureed
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup dry vermouth
• 1 lb cream cheese
• 1 cup grated gruyere cheese
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 lb claw crabmeat
• 1/4 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 teaspoon tabasco sauce
• 2 tablespoons chives, minced

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 350º.
• 2 feel through the crab meat to make sure there aren't any remaining bits of shell still attached.
• 3 melt the butter in a 2 quart, heavy-bottomed pan. add the shallots, cayenne and pepper and sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes. add the garlic and sauté until fragrant - only about 30 seconds.
• 4 pour the dry vermouth and the lemon juice into the pan, and raise the heat to medium-high, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze it. cook, uncovered, over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
• 5 lower the heat to medium-low. cut the cream cheese into large chunks (about 2 tablespoons each), and stir them into the pan, stirring well to make sure the cheese melts and is well combined with the other ingredients.
• 6 once all the cream cheese is melted, add the gruyere and parmesan cheeses. stir well until they are melted and combined with the rest of the ingredients.
• 7 stir in the crab meat, half and half, and tabasco, mixing to combine the ingredients well.
• 8 taste the dip - the cheeses add a fair amount of salt, so i don't usually add any more. but if you like you could add some salt at this point.
• 9 bake at 350º for 30 minutes. garnish with chives and serve with crackers or toast rounds.