Open just about any Maryland community cookbook from the 1980s, and you’re likely to find a recipe for Crab Meltaways. They’re easy, tasty, and great for company.
Most recipes call for “Kraft Old English Cheese Spread,” a product that, as far as I can tell, debuted in the 1930s. It is likely that the recipe for Crab Meltaways (also known as “Crabbies”) was developed by Kraft in the 1960s, but there are other variations without the product. John Shields included a recipe from Susan Corsaro in his 1992 “Chesapeake Bay Crab Cookbook,” using cheddar cheese, fresh garlic, and parsley.
The ingredients are gently mixed, piled atop split English muffins (often cut into wedges), and frozen. From the frozen state, they broil into a bubbly melted pile of deliciousness.
One of my recipes suggests canned crabmeat because these don’t really necessitate the good stuff.
Jukie Todd from Crisfield didn’t have that concern. A lifetime employee of her family’s MeTompkin Bay Oyster Company, she surely had plenty of crab to work with. Her recipe was included in the Women’s Ministries Faith Fellowship Church’s 1989 cookbook, unfortunately named “Plantation Favorites.” Todd had died in 1986, so the recipe must have been shared by friend or family.
Ira Thomas Todd founded the MeTompkin Bay Oyster Company shortly after returning home from WWII.
Juliana “Jukie” Todd was born in 1924. Her father, Clinton Sterling, also worked in the seafood business. Her husband, Willis “Wiggie” Todd, was the son of Ira Thomas Todd’s brother George. Jukie was secretary for the MeTompkin Bay Oyster Company for 30 years.
MeTompkin Bay Oyster Company is still in operation, dealing in crabmeat from Asia as well as Maryland crab. I used Asian crabmeat from Phillips for this recipe, as the Old English Cheese and spices dominate anyway. No point in investing in the more-flavorful Maryland crab, unless your family also owns a seafood packing company.
Instead of cutting them into quarters, I kept the English muffin-halves intact and ate these as a dinner with vegetable sides. I still have a few left-over. At some point, I’ll get peckish for a snack and get really excited when I remember that I have them.
Recipe:
- 1 package (6) English Muffins, split (cut into fourths if desired)
- 1 stick softened butter
- 1 5 oz jar Kraft Old English cheese
- 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
- .5 Teaspoon seasoning salt
- .5 Teaspoon garlic salt
- .5 Lb crab meat
Mix well all ingredients and add crabmeat last. Spread mixture on muffins that have been cut. Freeze until frozen (must be frozen first). Broil until bubbly and slightly browned; serve hot. May be kept frozen for a month.
Recipe from Plantation Favorites, Women’s Ministries Faith Fellowship Church, 1989.
