Sole Stuffed with Crab

December is always such a busy month that it's hard to find time to cook, let alone find time to post recipes, so that means my bar is a bit higher than normal when determining what makes it up here. Those delicious pork burgers that pair with homemade sun-dried ketchup? A little too much work for most people to make it up to the blog. An incredibly delicious crab dish that's simple enough to make it on the table in less than 30 minutes? Absolutely. These are easy enough for a weeknight, but nice enough for company. You can also assemble these ahead of time to cut down on the last minute work.

One year ago: Galveston Crab Cake
Two years ago: Quick and Easy Chinese Greens
Three years ago: Goat Cheese and Asparagus Risotto
Four years ago: Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Pine Nuts

Sole Stuffed with Crab (from Fish Without a Doubt)

Ingredients
8 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup minced shallots
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk, heated
coarse salt
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp minced fresh parsley
freshly ground white pepper
cayenne
1 lb jumbo lump crabmeat
6 (5 ounce) Dove sole fillets
dry breadcrumbs

(If not making in advance, preheat oven to 450F.)
1. Set up a bowl of ice with some water and set a smaller bowl on the ice. Set aside.
2. Melt 3 tbsp butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until softened, 2 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in flour and cook, stirring until roux smells toasty, about 6 minutes. Don't let it brown. (If you're scaling down, this may go quite a bit more quickly!)
4. Take pan off heat and whisk in milk, dissolving the roux. Season with salt and return to heat.
5. Bring sauce to a simmer, stirring, reduce heat to low and simmer until very thick.
6. Stir in mustard, lemon juice, and parsley. Season with pepper, cayenne, and salt.
7. Fold in crab and scrape into iced bowl to cool down quickly.
8. Melt remaining 5 tbsp butter and brush 6 individual gratin dishes with butter. Divide crab among gratins, mounding in center.
9. Cut sole fillets down center and then make a diagonal cut through each half. Drape 4 pieces of fish over stuffing in each gratin, so they cover the crab completely.
10. Brush fish with remaining melted butter. You can now refrigerate for up to a day.
11. Season fish with salt and just a tiny bit of cayenne. Dust lightly with a pinch or two of breadcrumbs for each casserole.
12. Bake until stuffing is bubbling and browning at edges, 10 minutes. Serve.