Crab Spaghettini with Chili

This has been an extremely busy week at our house.

We had a baby on Wednesday morning. Yes, you read that right. We had a baby. Wednesday. Our darling, Jack, arrived safely on his actual due date after a rather brief but arduous delivery. While my husband and I braced ourselves (mentally) for the long sleepless nights and the crying fits, nothing could have prepared us for the intense euphoria and joy of meeting your child for the first time. While it is tiring, it is certainly not without its rewards. Ah parenthood...

Now onto the business at hand...

As frazzled and tired as we are, we have still managed to cobble a couple of meals together. At times it can be a challenge, but I think the key is a well-stocked kitchen and a couple of "go to" recipes that you can quickly put together.

One of our classic standbys is this simple pasta dish. If you have time to boil water, you have time to make this delicious dish. While crab can be a little spendy, if you think about it balanced against one night of ordering in, it's still a pretty cost effective meal and makes an everyday meal slightly special.

Crab Spaghettini with Chili

1 lb pasta - long thinish noodles like spaghettini, spaghetti or linguine

4 tbsp butter
2 garlic cloves, minced finely
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/2 c grape or cherry tomatoes
1 lb crab meat*
1 large lemon, zested & juiced
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill

parmesan reggiano

1. Boil water & prepare pasta according to package's instructions.
2. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large sauce pan. Once bubbly, saute garlic and chili flakes until garlic is softened. Do not brown. Add tomatoes until softened then add crab meat. Break up crab into loose chunks
3. Once the pasta is al dente, drain immediately and add to a large pasta serving bowl. Set aside at least 1 c of pasta water.
4. Add prepared crab mixture on top of pasta and toss with lemon juice, zest and dill until well coated. Add additional pasta water to loosen if required. Add salt & pepper to taste. Finely grate parmesan on top and serve immediately.

*you can prepare your own crabs, but honestly, I buy the refrigerated picked crab meat. It's delicious and saved me alot of time...