Crab meat joins in with a bit of onion, sweet, pepper, celery, cream cheese and Greek yogurt to create a creamy, delightful dip with the addition of a couple essential Mediterranean staples. Transform a can of crab meat (or, if you are lucky, fresh crab meat) into a creamy enticing Mediterranean dip perfect for a small gathering (or personal snacking!)
The one super-essential and very Mediterranean ingredient in this dip is Muhammarah.
What is Muhammarah?
Muhammarah is a savory sweet Mediterranean roasted red pepper and walnut dip that is amazing in its own right. It’s easy to make and muhammarah freezes beautifully, so if you happen upon an abundance of sweet red peppers, you’re going to want to make a bunch of this exotic sweet red pepper paste (er, dip) and freeze it up for lovely snacking (or dip transformation!) anytime. It also is amazing spread on sandwiches and I’m thinking it would be a marvelous coating for crusted fish, chicken or pork. OR tucked into a stuffed eggplant or zucchini, or even tossed with pasta! Why the heck not? But today we’re all about dipping. Because everyone loves to dip, right?
Do you ever do that? Take one dip and make it into a second thing? It seems like I’m perpetually experimenting with every flavor sensation, trying to create something new to wow my taste buds. I absolutely adore muhammarah and have made it for years, but I was going to a small social distancing yoga party and I didn’t want to bring the same thing again. My yoga friends all LOVE muhammarah, so I needn’t have worried, but you know, sometimes you just gotta change things up.
So I took my muhammarah and mixed it with sauteed onion and celery, cream cheese and bit of creamy Greek yogurt … and then it needed a little something, so I stirred in a bit of Ras El Hanout, for intrigue.
What is Ras El Hanout?
If you’re not familiar with Ras El Hanout, it’s a middle eastern spice that literally means “head of the shop”, a blend of the best that the spice vendor had to offer. Since it’s particular to each spice vendor, every blend of Ras El Hanout is different. You can purchase Ras El Hanout or you can make it using this recipe (or search around for another that you like).
Is the Ras El Hanout required? Not really … the dip is quite good without it. But it does definitely add a hint of interest that makes it just a bit more enticing. (The muhammarah is quite enticing enough on its own … I’m not ditzing you, muhammarah, just sayin’ we want a little MORE flavor dance here with the crab and cream cheese.)
The yoga friends all very much enjoyed the crab dip and the toasted pita crisps I made to go with it. For myself, I preferred dipping my veggies, but I did have to enjoy one of the pita crisps. They are SO wonderful with this dip … perfectly crunchy on the outside and a little soft and chewy in the middle. Just thr right
How do you make toasted pita crisps?
Brush both sides of pita bread with olive oil, then cut into wedges. Arrange the pita triangles on a baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with coarse sea salt. Bake at 350 F. for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
Print
Mediterranean Crab Dip
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 15 min
- Total Time: 25 min
- Yield: 6 – 8 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 1/4 cup onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 mini sweet pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 6-oz. can crab meat (or 6 oz. of lump crab)
- 6 oz. Greek cream cheese (or Neufchatel)
- 1/2 cup muhammara (store bought or from this recipe)
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 teaspoon Ras El Hanout (or to taste – to make your own, see this recipe)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil, swirl it around in the pan, then add the garlic and onion. Saute for a few minutes until the onion is soft and translucent, then stir in the pepper and celery and cook for 2 – 3 more minutes.
- Stir in the crab and then add the cream cheese in chunks. Stir until cream cheese is melted, then add the muhammara, yogurt, and Ras El Hanout. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge until serving time. Dip can be served either hot or cold.
- At serving time, spoon into a serving bowl, garnish with crumbled feta and snipped chives (if desired) and serve with toasted pita wedges, crackers or veggie dippers.
Notes
© Copyright 2020, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. I love it when you share, but please do not use my images on your own site/page without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. Sharing, pinning, and tweeting is always appreciated as long as the shares and pins link back to here for the recipe. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.
Keywords: Red pepper, Crab, Mediterranean, Garlic, Onion, Garlic, Cream Cheese, Greek yogurt, Ras el Hanout, Gluten free, Heart healthy, High protein
1 comment
This sounds incredibly good, Ann. You make best dips! Never thought of mixing together muhammara and crab! You are so creative!