Truffled Crab Melt with Black Oregon Truffles

For those who follow this blog, you know I’ve been talking about the Oregon Truffle Festival in Eugene, Oregon the last weekend in January.

If I lived close by, I’d be there for some of the events.

Event organizer Leslie Scott got another recipe using black truffles for us.

Truffled Crab Melt
Serves 4
I’ve served this decadent variation of that diner favorite the tuna melt as part of an elegant lunch or cut in bite-sized pieces as an hors d’oeuvre. It is definitely fun, not at all fussy or difficult. A good-quality purchased mayonnaise will do nicely here, but if you like, try homemade aioli. We use an Italian sheep’s milk cheese, Boschetto al Tartufo, for its intense truffle taste and good melting qualities. Swiss Gruyère, which is easy to find, works as well. If fresh truffles are not in season, subsitute frozen ones. Truffle butter is available at specialty food stores or online.

4 thick slices Brioche or challah
4 teaspoons truffle butter, melted
1/2 pound Oregon Dungeness crabmeat, squeezed dry and picked over
2 ounces fresh Oregon black truffle, brushed clean and coarsely chopped
1 apple, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced Generous dash of Tabasco
2 tablespoons finely minced sweet red onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 cup Aioli
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces truffle cheese, such as Boschetto al Tartufo, shredded (about 1 cup shredded)

Method:
Preheat the broiler.
Brush one side of the brioche slices with the truffle butter and set on a baking sheet, buttered side up.
Toast the bread until golden, about 3 minutes.
Remove the toasts and turn the oven temperature to 400°F.
In a bowl, mix the crabmeat with the chopped truffle, sliced apple, Tabasco, onion, parsley, and lime juice.
Fold in the aioli to incorporate. Season with salt and pepper.
Top the toasts, buttered side down, with the crab salad and sprinkle with the cheese.
Bake in the upper third of the oven until the crab salad has warmed through and the cheese has melted, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

To Drink
The lovely berry flavor of a Cabernet Franc, fruity with a dry finish, shines through in Olga Raffault’s Chinon Rose from France, forming a perfect bond with the buttery brioche, sweet crabmeat, and decadent truffles. The locally produced Soter Beacon Hill Sparkling Brut Rose, made from Pinot Noir grapes, offers similar flavor profiles with an added note of elegant sparkle. It complements the sandwich nicely. –K.P.

Reprinted with permission from The Paley’s Place Cookbook: Recipes and Stories from the Pacific Northwest by Vitaly Paley and Kimberly Paley with Robert Reynolds, copyright© 2008. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House.

Thanks to Leslie and the authors for sharing this with us.