[Sca-cooks] Looking for Crab recipes

[Bronwynmgn at aol.com]

In a message dated 1/10/2004 6:04:05 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
DeeWolff at aol.com writes:

<<Hi, I have stepped out of kitchener semi-retirement and am looking for crab 
recipes.
I am working on an "Everyman's"menu: specifically on the English Isles 
(Cornwall, Ireland, Wales,Scotland, etc)>>

How about Crabbe or Lopster Boiled from Harleian MS 4016 (1450):
     Take a crabbe or a lopster, and stop him in the vente with on of hire 
clees, and seth him in water, and no salt; or else stoppe him in the same maner, 
and cast him in an oven, and bake him, and serve him forth cold.  And his 
sauce is vinegre.

Can't get much simpler than that, although I don't quite get the "stop him in 
the vent with one of her claws" instruction, and Cindy Renfrow doesn't list 
that one in her phrase glossary at the back of Take a Thousand Eggs.

There's also, Vyaunde de cyprys in lente, from Harleain MS 279 (1430):
     Take good thikke mylke of Almaundys, do it on a potte; & nyme the 
F(le)ysshe of gode Crabbys, and gode Samoun, & bray it smal, and tempere yt uppe 
with the forsayd mylke; boyle it, and lye it with floure of Rys or Amyndoun, an 
make it chargeaunt; when it ys y-boylid, do ther-to whyte Sugre, a gode 
quantyte of whyte Vernage Pime3 with the wyne, Pome-garnade.  Whan it is y-dressyd, 
straw a-bove the grayne of Pome-garnade

Bit more involved, and more expensive as it involves both salmon and 
pomegranites as well as the crab.

<<I especially need recipes with stretchers (pie/cakes) as to not destroy the 
budget (I also have pork and lamb on the menu)>>

Hmmm.  I find bean recipes to be great stretchers myself, as they are cheap 
and a bag of dried beans makes a LOT of cooked food.

Brangwayna