Crab And Avocado Stuffed Sub Sandwich - SRC

There were so many things I enjoyed about this sandwich and I have to thank Shari of The Saucy Gourmet for inspiring it.

That said,  I hope I don't ruffle too many feathers with my February's Secret Recipe Club adaptation of Shari's original recipe, "Crab and Avocado Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Old Bay Seasoned Butter" as I did change it up quite a bit.

It was Shari's original recipe that called my name and her photos that got my stomach to growling, but once I got my mind to thinking, and my fridge ingredients to want to play along, the sandwich morphed from something grilled to something stuffed... Is that so wrong I ask? LOL

One of the things that I really appreciated about Shari's original sandwich was that it was made with sourdough bread. Because baking bread is one of my favorite things to do, I decided I'd make my own Sourdough Oatmeal bread specifically for this sandwich (recipe coming soon).  Of course a large loaf of Italian bread will work well for this recipe too (store bought or homemade) they'll both taste delicious!

CRAB AND AVOCADO STUFFED SUB SANDWICH

1 long loaf of sourdough or Italian bread
1 large can (1 pound) crab claw meat, picked through for shells
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped red pepper
2 tablespoon finely inced shallots
1 tablespoon seafood seasoning
2 avocados, pitted and diced
1 tablespoon light mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Slice the bread in half lengthwise. Set aside.
-In a medium bowl, mix the crab meat, celery, red pepper, shallots and seafood seasoning.
-In a small bowl, using a fork, mash the avocado, mayo, lime juice, salt and pepper to form a somewhat lumpy mixture.
-Spread the avocado mayonnaise on the bottom slice of the bread.
-Top the avocado mayo with the crab meat mixture.
-Top the crab meat mixture with the shredded Swiss Cheese.
-Drizzle the top slice of the cut bread with the olive oil and sprinkle with the garlic powder.
-Place the top slice onto the sandwich and press lightly.
-Wrap the sub in aluminum foil.
-Place the loaf on a baking sheet and bake to heat through and melt the cheese (approximately 15-20 minutes).
-Slice and enjoy.

Beware, this may not be the neatest sandwich to eat, but it is super tasty and well worth the mess :)