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lime juice (about ½ lime)

½ teaspoon champagne

vinegar or white wine

vinegar

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon Tabasco

MAKES ABOUT ½ CUP

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend to a smooth purée.

LEMON PANKO SAUCE

½ cup panko

½ tablespoon freshly grated

lemon zest (about 1 small

lemon)

¼ cup finely chopped fresh

Italian parsley

¼ teaspoon salt

Pinch of cayenne

¼ cup unsalted butter

MAKES A GENEROUS ½ CUP

In a small bowl, mix the panko with the lemon zest, parsley, salt, and cayenne.

Melt the butter and pour it into a small bowl.

Serve the panko mixture and butter separately: instruct your guests to dip the crab into the melted butter and then into the lemon panko crumbs.

chilled cucumber-coconut soup with dungeness crab

1 tablespoon peanut or

vegetable oil

1 cup small-diced onion

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground

pepper

1 pound cucumbers, peeled,

seeded, and sliced ½ inch

thick

1½ cups chicken or vegetable

stock

1 cup coconut milk (from a

14-ounce can), reserving ¼

cup of the thick cream at the

top for garnish

1 cup packed fresh basil leaves,

plus 2 tablespoons chopped

¼ cup packed fresh cilantro

leaves and stems, plus 1

tablespoon chopped

3 dashes of Tabasco

Juice of 1 medium lime (about

1½ tablespoons)

1 tablespoon fish sauce

¼ pound Dungeness crabmeat

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive

oil

Jean-Georges Vongerichten is the owner of numerous restaurants around the world, including the three-Michelin-starred Jean-Georges in New York City. A brilliant food alchemist, he showed me that cucumbers could be whirled together with herbs and fish sauce in a cold blended soup. I adapted his recipe by adding coconut milk and more herbs. This is a great soup to make the day before and keep chilled. When you want to eat it, simply mix the crab with the herbs and, as Margaret Cho would say, “Put on your eatin’ dress.”

SERVES 4

Heat the peanut oil in a stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, salt, and pepper, and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the onion has softened. Add the cucumbers and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes more, then add the chicken stock, coconut milk, 1 cup basil leaves, and ¼ cup cilantro. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Add the Tabasco, half of the lime juice, and the fish sauce.

Transfer the soup to a blender and blend to a smooth, bright green purée. Let the blender run for about 2 minutes. Strain the soup through a fine mesh strainer, pressing on the solids to extract all of the liquid. Discard the solids. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. The soup should have enough saltiness, acidity from the lime, and a bit of a kick from the pepper and Tabasco. Chill the soup in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Double-check the crabmeat for any stray bits of shell, and reserve any nice, large crab pieces for garnish. Mix the 2 tablespoons chopped basil and 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro with the crabmeat and olive oil. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding a pinch of salt if necessary.

Serve the chilled soup in shallow bowls with a small amount of crab salad in the middle. Lean a few of the larger crabmeat pieces against the salad. Drizzle some of the reserved coconut cream around the edges (thin the coconut cream with a little water if necessary).

PAIRING: A Washington riesling, such as Chateau Ste. Michelle Eroica 2008, Columbia Valley, or a German Kabinett riesling.

dungeness crab mac-and-cheese

2 to 3 live Dungeness crabs, or

about ¾ pound crabmeat

1 pound good-quality cheddar

cheese (I like a mix of medium

and sharp)

¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter

¼ cup minced shallots

¼ cup all-purpose flour

3 cups whole milk, cold

2 fresh bay leaves, or 1 dried

¼ teaspoon regular or smoked

paprika

⅛ teaspoon saffron, mixed with

1 tablespoon hot water

1 tablespoon tomato paste

⅛ teaspoon cayenne

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 pound elbow or penne pasta

1 cup panko

1 tablespoon freshly grated

lemon zest (about 1 large

lemon)

¼ cup finely chopped fresh

Italian