Crab Mango and Avocado Salad

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted and diced
• 1/4 cup of water
• 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 lb of fresh lump Dungeness crabmeat, picked through to remove the small pieces of shell or cartilage
• 1 1/2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
• 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 Tbsp cilantro leaves, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons mint leaves, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp minced shallot or purple onion
• 1 medium sized mango, peeled, pitted, and diced
• 1 firm but ripe avocado, pitted, peeled, and diced
• Tabasco sauce

Directions

1. In a small pan over medium heat, warm 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Add the diced mango from 1 whole mango, then season it with salt and pepper. Cook it for about 3 minutes, stirring as it softens, until the mango is very tender.
2. Pour in 1/4 cup water, let it come to a boil, and take the pan off the heat. Mix in 1 teaspoon of lemon juice.
3. Transfer the mango mixture to a blender and purée it until completely smooth. Chill the sauce.
4. If you’re short on time, you can also add all of the sauce ingredients straight to a blender and purée them together.
5. Put the crab meat in a bowl with 2 teaspoons of the cilantro, 1 teaspoon of the mint, the chopped shallot, a Tbsp of lime juice, 2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil, 10 drops of Tabasco sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. Use a fork to combine everything gently, keeping those bigger pieces of crab intact. Set the bowl aside.
6. In another bowl, combine the diced mango from 1 whole mango, the diced avocado, 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 Tbsp of lime juice, the remaining cilantro and mint leaves, 10 drops of Tabasco, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir softly with a spoon so the avocado stays in pieces instead of turning creamy.
7. To put the salad together, spoon some of the mango avocado mixture onto a chilled plate, then carefully pile some of the crab mixture on top. Finish with cilantro leaves.
8. If you happen to have peeled sections of sweet ruby red grapefruit, arrange them around the salads for an extra little touch. The grapefruit works beautifully with the crab salad.
9. You can also make individual molds using small tureens or dessert bowls. Line each mold with plastic wrap, then layer in the crab mixture and the mango avocado mixture. Chill them in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours. When it’s time to serve, carefully unmold the salads onto individual plates.
10. Serve the sauce alongside the salads.