Cassie’s Ruminations

Christmas Eve Dinner

For Christmas Eve dinner, we steam some crab and make bacon wrapped shrimp. It’s a delicious and easy celebratory meal 🙂

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
Serves 4 as an entrée (about 10 shrimp per person) or 12 as an appetizer (about 3 shrimp per person)

1 pound easy peel shrimp (36-40 per pound)
1 pound bacon (not thick sliced)
40 toothpicks

Preheat the broiler (high setting if you have a high and a low setting) and place a rack on the very top shelf. Cut the bacon into thirds. Defrost the shrimp under running cool water. Peel them and de-vein if necessary. Wrap a piece of bacon around each shrimp and secure with a toothpick if desired. Line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil and place a metal cooling rack inside. Place the shrimp on top of the rack and put the pan under the broiler. Broil the shrimp for about 5 minutes or until the shrimp are cooked through and the bacon is turning crisp. Flip the shrimp and broil for another minute on the other side to finish crisping the bacon.

Steamed Crab Legs
Serves 2

2 large king crab legs (about 1 lb)

Soak 4 paper towels with water and wrap them around the crab legs loosely. Place the crab legs into a plastic bag and tie closed leaving a small hole to vent. Microwave until hot – about 5 minutes if the crab is thawed or about 7 minutes if frozen. The crab will be perfectly hot and steamed without overcooking.