When I first stopped eating meat, it seemed as if I was looking for reasons to eat it again. It definitely wasn’t intentional, but maybe subconscious. Every time an event or something was coming up, I’d get nervous and question what I was going to eat there. I didn’t want to quit my challenge, but I have to eat right?
I began giving myself that talk right before the holidays. I know my family and they are meat lovers. It’s nothing wrong with eating meat, but they put meat in any and everything you can think of. I suppose that is true for a lot of African-American families, but when you stop eating meat, you really question your discipline during those family feasts. I don’t know about you, but growing up, the holidays were a big deal in my family. I used to love coming home from college knowing my aunt would be beasting in the kitchen all day. And now that I don’t eat meat, I couldn’t get the full effect.
On Thanksgiving, we stopped at my fiance’s mom’s house, but everything wasn’t ready. We stopped at my aunt’s house, which I was really holding out for until I saw the spread. My entire plate was nothing but starch. I couldn’t even eat any greens because it had smoked turkey neck floating in it. Then, I went to my brother’s house and my plate, again, was all starch. That is until hours later I was standing near the table and read, upside down, crab pie. What is this?!
It was pure deliciousness that’s what it was and I have been hooked on that recipe ever since. So much so, that I decided to make it myself and share it with you.
What you will need:
– 2 eggs
– 1 pie crust
– peppers (I used greenish ones)
– onions
– a can of lump crab meat
– cheese (I used cheddar cheese)
– Seasoning: old bay, season salt, onion and garlic powder and your best cajun-styled seasoning
– 1/2 cup of mayo
Preparation: Chop the onions and green peppers. I think I also sauteed mine, but I don’t remember. I also prefer to shred my own cheese so if you are the same, do that. This recipe doesn’t call for the whole can of crab meat so scoop out about half, fork it so that it breaks down and season it. I used old bay and that New Orleans seasoning as well as onion and garlic powder, season salt, and black pepper. Once everything is seasoned to your liking, add in the two eggs and mayo.
Grease the dish you are going to use, lay the pie crust and put fork marks all over it. Then add the crab pie mixture. I also tried to scallop the pie crust edges to make it look fancy.
Clearly, that didn’t work because they fell. They always fall on me. What do you do to keep the edges scalloped and looking fancy?
Also, since you only used half of the crab meat, you can either make another pie or do what I did and make crab cakes. I ate mine with a fried egg on some wheat toast. Enjoy!
