Crab Souffle Tarts Recipe

Flaky homemade pastry tarts are filled with a savory crab mixture flavored with mustard and dill. If you have one, use your food processor to cut the butter and flour for the pastry dough. Plan ahead to refrigerate the pastry dough for 30 minutes. If you are pressed for time, you may use frozen puff pastry tart shells.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• Flaky Pastry Dough:
• 2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 to 5 Tablespoons ice water
• .
• Crab Souffle:
• 1/2 recipe Flaky Pastry Dough
• 3 egg yolks
• 4 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons fresh dill, feathery parts only, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 6 ounces crab meat, well picked

Preparation:

Flaky Pastry Dough:
Stir together the flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Using the paddle attachment of an electric mixer (or a pastry cutter or a fork), cut in the butter until the mixture resembles cornmeal. With the mixer on low speed, add the egg, then the water a tablespoon at a time, mixing just until the dough begins to mass around the paddle. Do not overbeat. Gather the dough together into a ball; wrap in wax paper, plastic wrap, or aluminum foil, and chill for 30 minutes.

Note: Leftover dough may be wrapped tightly in aluminum foil and plastic wrap and frozen for several weeks. Let thaw in refrigerator before using.

Yield: 8 tartlet shells 3 or 4 inches in diameter

Crab Souffle Tarts:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

To prepare the shell crusts, roll the dough into a large round about 1/8 inch thick. Using a very sharp knife, cut the dough into 6 pieces slightly larger than the baking dishes. Cover inverted dishes with the dough, pressing firmly. Trim away the edges of the pastry. Prick the pastry all over with a fork, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until well browned. Let pastries cool on the dishes, then separate. Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Meanwhile, prepare the souffles.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks until very thick and light in color. In another medium bowl, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice until firm but still glossy. Stir the mayonnaise, mustard, dill, salt, pepper, and crab into the yolks, then fold in the whites. Fill the pastry shells with the mixture and bake for about 8 minutes, or until puffy and browned on top.

Yield: 6 servings

Recipe Source: Souffles by Ann Amernick and Richard Chirol (Clarkson N. Potter Publishers)
Reprinted with permission.

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