Crab + Mac and Cheese

I made this to spoil myself. Long days at work, of course, have me craving mac and cheese. But, I really wanted to INDULGE myself. I took a spontaneous trip to the grocery store thinking I was going to just make the richest mac and cheese I could find. Then I was like, “Why not add crab?” So, I did. It was also my very first experience with canned meat and I don’t hate it. Make sure you get LUMP crab meat so you have chunks and not the ground up, mealy type of meat. This would obviously be better with fresh crab, but I’m a girl tight on time and on cash!

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. penne pasta (cooked)
2 cans of lump crab meat (around 8-10 oz. total if using fresh)
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
2 cups milk
8 oz. gruyere cheese – shredded
7 oz. parmesan cheese – shredded (set 3 oz. aside)
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
Salt
Pepper

Topping:

1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
1 Tbsp. melted butter
3 oz. shredded parmesan cheese

While your pasta is boiling (I suggest cooking it in a LARGE pot), go ahead and star your roux. Melt the 2 Tbsp butter in a saucepan.

Once it has melted, add your flower and whisk together on medium-low heat until smooth and bubbly.

Add 1/2 cup of the milk and mix until smooth. Then, add the rest of the milk and turn the heat up to medium-high. Whisk continuously until the sauce is thick.

Turn the temperature back down to medium-low and add your cheese and stir until melted.

While this is melting, you can mix your topping together by melting 1 Tbsp. butter in a small bowl. Add the breadcrumbs and coat them with the melted butter. Stir in the 3 oz. parmesan and set aside.

Once your sauce has melted, add the salt, pepper and cayenne.

After draining your pasta, pour it back into the large pot with your cheese sauce.

Add your drained crab meat and stir together. Heat it back up if it loses temperature at all.

While you’re stirring, get your broiler hot. I have a low broiler setting, that is what I used for this. I just wanted to brown the top, since the pasta was still hot.

Pour your mac into a 2-qt. casserole dish, sprinkle the topping over the entire dish and place under your broiler for 5 minutes or until brown and crispy.

You could add an extra 1/2 cup of milk or so and bake at 350-degrees for 35 minutes. Since I was in a hurry, I moved directly from hot pan to casserole dish and immediately into a hot oven to brown the topping. The reason for this is purely so I could shovel it in my face sooner. I have no shame when I am strapped for time.