When last we spoke, Charlie and I were just finishing off some really tasty Thai crab cakes on a bed of arugula with a vaguely Thai-flavored mayo...
Mmmmmmmm...
But the remaining crabmeat would not last another day, so I devised a simple but very flavorful Mediterranean crab "sauce" to serve over soft white polenta. Why white, you ask? Two reasons: one, I like it better than yellow, and two, in Venice, white polenta is generally the Go-To when seafood is part of the dish...
And who am I to argue with the Venetians!?!
I started my typical polenta... 1C white corn meal...
(Don't bother with something labeled "polenta..." It'll cost you three times as much. Just use your favorite good white corn meal - stone ground is best - and coarse or fine is up to you... I like fine.)
...whisked into 3C whole milk with a pinch of salt and a bay leaf. I start the liquid cold, and nary a lump has ever darkened my polenta door! Cook at a low simmer for about 20-30 minutes while you do other prep... stirring whenever you think to.
In a saucepan, I softened a minced small onion, and a few minced garlic cloves in EVOO. When soft, I added a splash of white wine, salt, pepper, a minced cayenne from our garden (yes... still... no idea why) and let it all simmer away happily.
When the polenta was seconds away from being done, I added a splash of cream and the crab... for just long enough to warm them...
Served it ladled over the polenta, in hot bowls...
Sprinkled with showers of chopped parsley (again... no idea why it's still growing...)
But here's the really fun part: as an extra added garnish, I rinsed off about a tablespoon of salt-packed capers and fried them in a bit of EVOO...
Sprinkle those over the top and stand back! Actually, don't stand back... Dig in!
So. A decadent two days of crab, with enough for Charlie to have some for lunch the next day... Yum!