Crab Salad Cups

INGREDIENTS
1 pound shelled cooked crab
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup minced red onion
1 teaspoon sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
16 medium butter lettuce leaves (about 2 heads)
1 avocado, cut into 16 thin slices
2 teaspoons prepared cocktail sauce
1 lemon, sliced into small wedges

DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium bowl, stir together crab, mayonnaise, parsley, onion, and sugar until well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste, then chill until ready to serve.
2. Arrange lettuce on a large platter. Place about 2 tbsp. crab mixture onto center of each leaf. Top each with a slice of avocado, about 1/8 tsp. cocktail sauce, a lemon wedge, and salt and pepper to taste.

Make ahead: Prepare through step 1 and chill, covered, up to 1 day. Serves 8.

Marla's Hummus

INGREDIENTS
1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
1/3 – 1/2 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 –2 Tbsp Tahini (can substitute peanut butter but not preferred)
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 Tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Process chickpeas and garlic in a blender or food processor until finally chopped. Add lemon juice, Tahini and salt process until mixed well then add olive oil to desired consistency. Add a little chili powder with the olive oil, if you like. You could also add olives for a variation or garnish. Serve with pita chips or veggies (Marla recommends *baby carrots*).

Paella

After seeing Mario Batali's Paella on Oprah, I've decided I have to make it! First it looks like I'll need to invest in a Paella pan, but after that it is a very flexible recipe where you can add as much good stuff as you want and substitute almost anything. Great for entertaining a crowd!



INGREDIENTS
10 small to medium chicken drumsticks
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups medium shrimp , enough for about 5 per person
1 medium Spanish onion , cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/2 cup pureed ripe tomatoes
1 tsp. kosher salt , or to taste
1 tsp. saffron threads
2 Tbsp. sweet pimenton (Spanish smoked paprika)
4 quarts chicken stock
2 cups bomba or other shortgrain rice
1 pound Manila clams , scrubbed
1 cup freshly shucked peas
10 spears pencil asparagus , stalks cut on the diagonal into 1/4-inch thick slices
1-inch pieces of sausage

DIRECTIONS
Preheat an oven to 400°. Place the drumsticks on a baking sheet and season all over with salt and extra-virgin olive oil. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes and set aside.

In the meantime, heat a 14- to 18-inch paella pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and heat until smoking. Add the shrimp and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Add the onion to the pan and cook until soft, about 8 minutes. Push the onions into the center of the pan and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the salt around the edges of the pan.

Add the tomato puree, stirring it into the onions, and cook for 3 minutes. Add the remaining salt, the saffron, pimentón and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add chicken stock, bring to a boil, and cook for 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir well to distribute it evenly. Add clams, drumsticks, arranging them nicely throughout the pan. Then add the peas and asparagus and bring the stock back to a boil, and cook, without stirring, for 10 minutes. Taste for salt and add it if needed, then cook, again without stirring, for 10 more minutes, or until the liquid is almost completely absorbed and the pan starts to make a crackling noise (don't worry, this is what you want).

Remove from the heat and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Apple Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS
Red food coloring
Simple Buttercream
Vanilla Cupcakes
24 thin pretzel sticks
Sour green apple candy strips (about 2 1/2 feet)

DIRECTIONS
Using food coloring, tint buttercream as desired.

Using an offset spatula, frost the cupcakes with a generous amount of buttercream. Place a pretzel stick in the center of each cupcake to form a stem. Using kitchen scissors, cut candy strips into leaf shapes, and insert one into each cupcake, creating an apple. for each cupcake. Place next to the pretzel stem.

Greek Salad

INGREDIENTS
4 large hearts romaine lettuce, torn
2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
2 English cucumbers, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and cut into strips
1 red bell pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and cut into strips
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded, ribs removed, and cut into strips
1 medium red onion, chopped
Kalamata olives, pitted
Green olives, pitted
Store-bought stuffed grape leaves (optional)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Place lettuce on a large, deep oval platter. Arrange feta, cucumbers, tomatoes, each pepper, onion, each type of olive, and grape leaves, if using, in rows on top of the lettuce.

In a small bowl, whisk together oil and vinegar; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over salad just before serving.