Crab Cakes

Crab Cakes--one of the tastiest, most savory dishes I've ever had (and I've had a LOT of different cuisines!).  Most people eat crab cakes in restaurants for their seafood novelty, but rarely, and I really do mean RARELY, does an American family make this dish at home.  Why? Well, they can be a tough crab to crack if you know what I mean.  Most homemade crab cakes fall a part or taste funny (probably from the use of imitation crab instead of the real crustacean) and the dish becomes a "professionals know best" seafood cuisine item instead of a clearly delicious homemade treat.

Thus, the key to making a successful crab cake lies on two essential, crucial, imperative, requisite, fundamental (GET IT? these two points are really important) facts: 1.) all crab cakes must be made with REAL crab.  None of that fake, man-made red dye #4 crap, and 2.) all crab cakes should be baked in the oven (not fried).

If you agree to these terms, then follow to the next paragraph.

I was inspired to make this recipe while running in the gym last week: Guy Fieri was visiting a diner where a behind-the-scenes cook was making Crab Cakes in massive quantities (I think the recipe yielded something like 32-33 cakes!).  Guy kept asking him, "and you're sure these aren't going to break apart?" to which the cook responded, "OF COURSE NOT.  We're baking them in the oven."  Guy was impressed, I was impressed, and I dare say this recipe is straight up IMPRESSIVE.  Although I do not have Guy's recipe exactly, my method and ingredients are pretty similar.  Make this as an entree in large quantities (recipe yields about 8 cakes), or an appetizer with smaller servings.

Crab Cakes w/Spice
There is no exact source for the creation of this recipe.  As always, I consulted Elise's blog Simply Recipes to get an idea of what works, but I ended up blending a combination of her spices/measurements with some of my own preferences.  See Elise's Spicy Crab Cakes recipe here, or Regular (first attempt at) Crab Cakes here. 


NOTE: The key is NOT to pan fry the crab cakes.  I don't care how much you know about what you're doing, it's just NOT going to work.  Bake them in the oven for less work (and stress) and you'll have a dish that impresses everybody.


Ingredients:
* 1 lb real crab meat (I got mine from Whole Foods at $20 a lb.  A bit pricey, but definitely worth it for a once in a while dish)
* 1/2 small onion, chopped
* 1/4 of a red bell pepper, chopped
* 1/4 of a green bell pepper, chopped
* 1 teaspoon coarse salt
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 2 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* 1 teaspoon paprika
* 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 tablespoons mayo (spicy mayo if you have it)
* bread crumbs, for dusting
* 2 slices of Whole Foods Seeduction bread, torn, or chopped into small pieces
* 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
* 2 teaspoons lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons Grey Poupon Mustard
* 1/2 teaspoon fresh, or ground thyme

1.) Prep all of your ingredients: chop the bell peppers, parsley, and onion and measure your spices.

2.) Sauté onion for several minutes in 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon coarse salt.

3.) Add peppers and sauté until slightly browned and translucent (onions).  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

4.) Prepare batter: combine eggs and spices.

4.) Whisk to combine.  Add cooled onions and pepper mixture.

5.) Add crab meat and gently fold meat into batter.

6.) Add seeduction bread chunks and fold into crab and spice batter.

7.) Once your batter is prepared, it should look similar to a crab salad, only with significantly more hardiness to it:

8.) Now, the fun part! You are ready to make the actual cakes.  Begin by lightly dusting a baking sheet with bread crumbs.  

9.) Grab a small handful of the crab mixture and shape into a ball.

10.) Place on dusted baking sheet and press down lightly so that the crab cakes are not perfectly circular balls, but rounded discs.

11.) Dust lightly with bread crumbs and refrigerate until you're ready to cook them (for me, it was about 30 minutes).

12.) Cook in a 350F oven for 25-30 minutes, or until cakes are golden brown.  Remove from oven, allow to cool for several minutes, and enjoy! Makes 8 servings, or 4 double servings.  Serve with Elise's Horseradish Mayo Recipe or Tyler Florence's Remoulade.

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