Maine Peekytoe Crab Salad with Pickled Peaches and Thai Basil

This is one of Chef Tony Conte of The Oval Room’s most popular first-course dishes, . It’s a demanding one for a home cook. But most of it can be prepared well ahead and there is, in fact, little real cooking involved. If you'd prefer just to tackle the Basil Oil, as Tony Conte suggests, it also appears as a separate recipe.

Serves two

1/2 pound crab meat, seasoned with salt, cayenne pepper and extra virgin olive oil
Two peaches
1 1/4-inch-thick slice of bread for croutons, crusts removed
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
White pepper
1 pound basil
Grapeseed oil
Kosher salt

For pickling juice:
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup lime juice
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup elderflower cordial
2 ounces sugar
Scant (slightly less than full) tablespoon toasted fennel seeds (crushed)
Scant tablespoon coriander seeds (crushed)
1 inch licorice stick (crushed)
Scant tablespoon salt
Scant tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves, torn
Scant tablespoon fresh basil leaves, torn

Bring the ingredients except the fresh herbs to 185 degrees on a stovetop. Remove from heat and add herbs, cover and let steep. When it reaches room temperature, strain it into a container and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the peaches:
Peel the peaches and dice them small. Pickle a small batch at a time in
the pickling liquid, for 15 to 20 minutes.

For the croutons:
Remove the crust and cut into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss with extra virgin olive oil, salt and white pepper, bake at 350 degrees, turning once, until golden brown, then cool.

For the basil oil:
Pick the leaves off 1 pound of basil. Blanch, drain and dry on paper towels, separating the leaves as much as possible. Put in a blender with 1 inch of grapeseed oil (or other light, flavorless seed oil), kosher salt and blend until a bright green. Pour the oil into a bowl nestling in ice to chill quickly, pass it through a fine sieve without pushing, let drain at least 2 hours, then refrigerate till needed.

Assembly for casual home presentation:
Divide the crab into two parts and form into a crab cake in the center of each plate. Cover with 2 tablespoons of pickled peach and then with half the croutons.

Drizzle a generous tablespoon of first the pickling liquid and then the basil oil around the whole construction and place some small basil leaves on top of the crab cake.

This recipe was adapted by the NorthWest Current where it first appeared. Photo courtesy Tony Conte.

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