I promise I’m not trying to make being Italian my only personality trait - because people that do are insufferable - but Italian American food was a focal point of growing up in my family. Italian American cuisine is what many Americans actually assume is really authentic Italian cooking; however, it’s more of this Northeast / Mid-Atlantic evolution of classic Italian that deviated after immigrants in the early 1900s settled in the US and passed recipes on to future generations. Holidays and Sunday dinners at our house or our grandmother’s house were abundant with rich, red, meaty sauces and piles of pasta. Mom and Grandma would pour their love and souls into buttery garlic breads, bowls full of antipasto salads, perfectly-wrapped eggplant rollatini, and pillowy gnocchi.

All of these dishes were wonderful in their own right, but I would be remiss if I didn’t call out the divinity that was my mom’s crab sauce.

The Origins of Mom’s Crab Sauce

Circa 2004: Grandma Rosie & I taking the tops off of crabs to make the crab sauce. This was the one thing I was pretty good at in the kitchen.

Something that some of you may not know is that my mom passed away in 2019 at only 57 years old. When she passed, I regretted not spending more time cooking alongside her. My time in the kitchen with her and both my grandmothers was really touch-and-go. There were things I occasionally helped with, but I never sat down to cook with any of them from start-to-finish. Within the last decade, I’ve lost all three of my matriarchs, but I am thankful that I at least have some recipes to work with. One of which is the crab sauce.

To be fair, my mother got it from her mother, my Grandma Rosie; it was right before my mom passed away that I found a newspaper clipping buried in a box in her kitchen with the entire recipe on it. All this time, I thought it was some big family secret! Turns out, it was printed in a newspaper years ago!

After I moved away from home, when I’d visit, my mom often made this crab sauce for me. She knew I loved it, and because she loved me, she was always happy to do it. I have a lot attached to this sauce, and it seems silly because on the surface, it’s just food… but it goes deeper than that. It’s the love my mother had for me. It’s clarity and sharpness for fuzzy, distant memories of holidays, dinners, and people. It’s honoring her as we continue on everyday without her.

Even a Smell Can Trigger a Memory

I’ve been holding off on making this crab sauce since discovering the the clipping back in 2019. I can’t tell you the last time I actually ate it - it was many years ago. However, with 2020 being the dumpster fire it has been, I decided that I would make my mom’s crab sauce for Christmas Eve for Chris and I to enjoy. As I was cooking it yesterday, the aromas caught me off guard, as did my tears. The smell sucked me back into the deep pockets of my memories, from ripping off blue crab tops with Grandma, to mountains of crab shells picked clean, to red sauce splatters on everyone’s shirts after a dinner well-enjoyed.

Now the sauce sits in my refrigerator, waiting to be warmed up for tomorrow’s Feast of Seven Fishes dinner - a true Italian-American tradition! Because it’s just Chris and I this year, my seven fish are reduced to just five, with a lineup including: bacon wrapped scallops, anchovy bread, lobster bisque, and mom’s crab sauce (featuring both blue crabs & shrimp). It may be a tiny feast, but a feast none the less, and I’m happy that I’m finally ready to taste that sweet, red sauce once again.

As a Christmas gift from me to you, here is the crab sauce recipe. I wanted to share this dish, plus the love, joy, and memories that come along with it. I hope you try it, and that you make your own memories, too. My readers, I wish you a very warm and happy holiday season. Please be safe and I hope 2021 brings far more joy than this last go around the sun.

And finally, to my Mom, I love you and miss you always.

Mom's Crab Sauce Recipe

By Bake Gia Bake
Sweet, rich and a little messy. Here's the recipe for an Italian-American crabs, spaghetti and sauce dish. Originally from a newspaper clipping from years ago, my family adapted this recipe and it's been filling tummies and bowls ever since.
Prep time: 40 minutes | Cook time: 04:00 | Total time: 04:40
Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

Olive oil
2 heads of garlic, peeled & chopped
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 dozen fresh blue crabs, cleaned with tops removed
2 16-oz cans crushed tomatoes
2 cups water (or use an empty tomato can from above)
1 12-oz can tomato paste
1 pound uncooked jumbo shrimp, peeled & deveined with tails on
2 - 2 1/2 pounds thin spaghetti

Instructions

Coat the bottom of a large stock pot with olive oil & turn heat to medium-low. Once warm, add garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, parsley and blue crabs and stir gently. Cook until the crabs turn pink.
Turn the heat to low, put a lid on your pot and let it cook for 20 minutes.
Add crushed tomato, water, and tomato paste. Stir. Cover again, and let simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the shrimp, stir, then cover again and let simmer for 1 hour & 40 minutes. Stir occasionally & make sure it stays at a low simmer.
Remove the lid, and let it simmer uncovered for 1-2 hours, until the sauce has thickened. If the sauce gets far too thick, add in a little water one tablespoon at a time and stir it in.
*Optional step, for extra flavor: Let it cool completely & store in the refrigerator for 1-2 days; reheat on the stove when ready to eat. You can skip this step if time is not on your side.
Prepare thin spaghetti according to package directions. While spaghetti cooks, remove crabs from sauce and place in a separate serving bowl. Pour sauce directly over pasta and serve everything family style.