stone crab season is upon us. Actually, it has been for a while now, but I finally shelled out the cash (get it?! get it?!) and placed an order from George's Stone Crab, the very convenient, very fresh service that delivers the Carribean delicacy from the ocean to your door. I placed the order the day before, gave them a time frame and a cooler full of claws showed up at my house the next afternoon.

There are a few things I love about stone crabs, let me list them for you:

1.) EATING THEM
2.) THE MUSTARD DIPPING SAUCE, Joes (of course) and Mariner's Seafood in South Miami also have great versions
3.) HOW HARD THEY ARE TO EAT, I also love artichokes, oysters, chicken wings and anything else that's more time consuming to figure out how to eat than to actually eat it
4.) THEY"RE SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOOD, One time I saw an Andrew Zimmern special on how they catch the crab, tear off one claw and then throw them back into the ocean. The crab grows a new claw by next year's season and can defend itself with one claw in the meantime.

Given my serious love for stone crabs, I knew I needed to whip up some side dishes that would be light enough to complement the crabs, but substantial enough for this to be a real, nice feast. Oh, and I didn't want to go to the grocery store, so here's what I came up with based on what we had it the fridge. Next time, I'll make the exact same sides:

Serves 4

sweet potato fries:

2 sweet potatoes cut into very, very thin strips

use a cast iron skillet if available and lightly fry in vegetable oil over a medium heat. We left them somewhere right between crunchy and sauteed and worked in batches. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste.

sweet pea and pea shoot couscous

prepare 1 cup of couscous - should only take about five minutes, then stick it in the freezer to cool.

1 package of pea shoots (we found them at Trader Joes)

1 package of fresh English Peas (also a TJ find)

3 green onion stalks, chopped

juice of one lemon

sea salt and pepper

mix it all together, dish should be served cold

stoner lunch