Semi-Homemade Crab Alfredo

For a long time, I didn’t think there was any space for semi-homemade dishes in the blog world.  So when I’m at home making dishes with jarred marinara sauce, canned enchilada sauce, or pesto made fresh at the grocery store, I am definitely not thinking “blog-worthy”.  Well, apparently I was wrong!  (Thank you Facebook NPC-ers!)  I went to a great market near Portland’s alphabet district called Zupan’s and came across some great quality items that were fresh made.  One of those items was alfredo sauce.  The sauce was mild and creamy, which provided a great base for a delicious Semi-Homemade Crab Alfredo.

When you use pre-made additions, it’s important to buy quality ingredients.  Look for items that are fresh, made in-house, and organic or all-natural.  When I found the alfredo sauce, I knew I wanted to make an awesome seafood alfredo so I bought wild lump snow crab.  I know wild seafood is more expensive but the taste is amazing!  If you want your semi-homemade dish to stand up to its fully homemade equivalent, I recommend buying the best!  Of course, if you decided to use Bertolli jarred alfredo sauce and farm-raised lump crab, it would still be pretty awesome :)

Ingredients:

½ lb whole-wheat linguine

3 tbsp butter or margarine

1 small lemon, juiced

½ lb lump crab meat

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

16oz pre-made alfredo sauce

¼ c chopped parsley

Shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)

  

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

Heat butter and juice from ½ a lemon in a large skillet over low-medium heat.  Add crab; break into large chunks, and sauté until warmed through.    Add garlic, salt, and pepper.

Note:  The crab will soak up nearly all of the butter and lemon juice mixture.  Yum!

Add alfredo sauce and heat until light bubbles form. 

Optional: I added about ¼ c Parmesan cheese here to build up a sharper flavor in the store-bought alfredo sauce.  This step is optional depending on the type of pre-made alfredo you use and your own taste preference.  You can also add salt and pepper as needed.

Add pasta and juice from remaining half of lemon.  Stir well to combine.  Remove from heat.  Stir in 1/8 c parsley.  Garnish plates with remaining parsley and Parmesan cheese as desired.

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