Fill medium sauce pot a quarter of the way with water and bring to a rapid boil.
Place crabs in sauce pot and cover tightly with lid for 7 minutes on medium-high heat. 
After 7 minutes, remove the pot from heat, but leave the lid on. 
After another 7 minutes, remove the crabs with tongs and set aside to cool. 
To make the pasta sauce, toast cinnamon stick in a saute pan.
Once cinnamon becomes fragrant, add oil, minced vegetables, thyme, and crushed red pepper.
Lightly salt and sweat until translucent. 
Add the white wine to the pan and reduce to a third. 
Add crushed tomato and bring to a low simmer. 
With cooled crab, remove legs and claws and pull carapace apart. 
Reserve liquids and body contents and pour them into the saucepan. 
Whisk cream cheese into sauce until incorporated and velvety.
Bring large sauce pot with water for pasta to a boil. Salt generously, then submerge pasta. 
Once "al dente," add strained pasta to sauce and stir quickly to coat. 
Add a 1/2 cup of pasta water to the sauce to give it a glossy appearance. 
Add a squeeze of fresh lemon and cracked pepper to taste, then plate and garnish with parmesan, bread crumb, and parsley. 
Add 1-2 crab claws in the shell to each plate, and serve with steel crackers and a claw pick. 
Pair with a favorite wine. 

Recipe by Natalie Sawyer and Jason McCleod, San Diego Seafood: Then and Now

Photo courtesy of Chris Rov Costa