CRABCAKES AT THE CONROYS'

Of all places to find a crab cake recipe, AARP Magazine was not on my list.  The brief story in the April 2009 issue written by author Pat Conroy's wife, Cassandra King, drew me in.  They met over food, they romanced with food, and, in her words, "Pat said his crab cakes were so good I would want to marry him after tasting them.  They were, and I did."  With that kind of endorsement I just had to try the recipe, even though I was a skeptic.  How could these be good with so few ingredients?  Where would the flavor come from?  As my hubby, The Crab Guy, and I took our first bites, we understood completely that old adage, "less is more."  The flavor?  It comes from the crab meat, enhanced by a minimum of additives.  This is the best crab cake recipe ever.

The Conroys serve their crab cakes over arugula, tossed with extra-virgin olive oil and champagne vinegar.  Sounded lovely, maybe next time.  This time, we had fresh spinach sauteed lightly in olive oil and corn on the cob.  It was a meal to die for.

The Conroys use an entire pound of crab meat, yielding 4 generous crab cakes, for the two of them.  I halved the recipe to make one crab cake apiece for Guy and me.  It was plenty.

Crab Cakes at the Conroys'
Adapted from AARP Magazine, April 2009
Rating:  10 out of 10
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Crab Cakes:
8 oz. fresh lump crab meat
1-1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/8 - 1/4 tsp. fine sea salt, preferably grey salt
about 1/16 tsp. black pepper
1 small egg white
1-1/2 - 3 tsp. white whole wheat flour
2-4 tsp. unsalted butter
small cast-iron skillet or small flat, heavy skillet

Put crab meat in a bowl; pick over for shells.  Squeeze lemon juice over crab; salt and pepper lightly.  Gently toss together without breaking up crab meat pieces.  In a small dish, whisk egg white till foamy.  Pour over crab and gently mix in.  Using as little flour as possible, form mixture into two crab cakes.  Melt butter in cast-iron skillet (or in a flat, heavy skillet) until sizzling and just beginning to brown.  Carefully add crab cakes.  Brown on 1 side until crispy, about 2 minutes; turn carefully and brown the other side, about 2 minutes.  Remove to plates.  Serve with Caper Sauce.

Caper Sauce
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1-1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1-1/2 tsp. freshly chopped parsley
1-1/2 tsp. capers

Add butter to still-hot skillet, stirring to dislodge any crab bits still stuck to the skillet.  When butter begins to brown, add juice and turn off the heat.  Throw in capers and toss.  Drizzle sauce over crab cakes and serve.

MARYLAND CRAB CAKES II WITH SPICY RANCH AIOLI

The kitchen belongs to me:  I am the Crab Lady!  The Crab Guy is trying to invade my territory.  He insisted on making this recipe.

First, he steamed crabs that he caught.  Next, he picked.  For several hours.  He picked enough to make 1 lb. of crab meat.  Then he mixed the ingredients for crab cakes.  He used a recipe from allrecipes.com rated 4-1/2 stars.  Many reviewers, however, said the recipe needed more flavor (hot sauce, Old Bay....).  The Crab Guy wanted to make the original recipe, but I insisted that he add a bit more hot sauce, which he did.  The recipe just said, "salt and pepper to taste," so he added 1/8 tsp. salt and a pinch of pepper.  It needed a bit more, so I've doubled the amount in the recipe below.

First, let me say that these were good crab cakes.  There is very little filler, mostly just a binder to hold the crab meat together.  The sauce (mine) was not in the original recipe, and goes well with the crab.  The concept of broiling versus frying is one I agree with in theory, but the reality is that broiling crab cakes makes for a somewhat hard crust.  My personal preference is for a crispy, more tender crust, which can only be had by sauteeing or frying.

If you make these, be sure you pick through the crab meat and get all the pieces of shell and cartilage out.  There's nothing worse than biting into a crab cake and getting a mouthful of shells.  And, by the way, my favorite crab cakes are still Maryland Pavilion Crab Cakes, first introduced at the 1964 World's Fair.

Maryland Crab Cakes II
Adapted from allrecipes.com
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
CLICK FOR PRINTABLE PAGE

Spicy Ranch Aioli:
1/2 cup bottled ranch dressing
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tsp. finely chopped chipotle chile in adobo sauce
2 Tbsp. finely chopped cilantro

Crab Cakes:
1 lb. crab meat, picked over to remove shells and cartilage
1-1/2 Tbsp. dry bread crumbs
2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. sea salt (changed from the original)
1/8 tsp. black pepper (changed from the original)
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp. ground dry mustard
1/4 tsp. hot pepper sauce (changed from the original)

In small bowl, combine aioli ingredients; set aside.  Preheat broiler.  Combine crab meat, bread crumbs, parsley, salt and pepper.  Beat together egg, mayo, hot sauce and mustard.  Combine with other ingredients and mix well, but lightly, taking care not to press too hard on the crab meat.  Form into patties and place on a lightly greased broiler pan or baking sheet.  Broil for 10-15 minutes, until lightly brown.  Serve with spicy ranch aioli.   Yield:  5 crab cakes

PAULA DEEN'S CRAB CAKES WITH LEMON-DILL SAUCE

With our bowl of picked crabmeat left from Friday's crab feast, I decided to make Paula Deen's crab cakes. I thought these were delicious, but the Crab Guy was very disappointed and said he didn't enjoy them at all. He feels the crabs should not be overpowered with spices and flavorings and he insisted he couldn't taste crab in these. I very much disagree, and this just further proves the point that eating is a very personal thing -- while I would gladly make these again, Guy won't have any part of it. So you will have to make up your own mind on whether you want to try this recipe. I heartily endorse it. And Paula Deen didn't get where she is by producing inferior recipes. Now you all know what I deal with here and how hard it is for me to cook in this kitchen with such a fussy, fussy hubby. I love him dearly, but he is a picky picky eater! I'd like to hear your comments if you try this recipe. Who got it right: Paula and me, or the Crab Guy?

Paula Deen's Crab Cakes with Lemon-Dill Sauce
Rating: 9 out of 10

Lemon Dill Sauce: 1 cup mayonnaise (I used Duke)
1/4 cup buttermilk (I used a mixture of lite sour cream and fat-free half & half)
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp. grated lemon zest
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, finely grated or minced

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Refrigerate until well chilled, about 1 hour or more. Sauce will thicken as it chills.

Crab Cakes: 3 Tbsp. butter
1 green onion, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. finely chopped red bell pepper (I used roasted red pepper)
1 garlic clove, finely grated or minced
3 Tbsp. heavy cream (I used lite sour cream because I didn't have heavy cream)
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 egg
1/2 tsp. minced fresh parsley
Cayenne pepper to taste
1/4 tsp. sea salt
dash black pepper
1 cup bread crumbs (1/2 for coating) (I used Peppridge Farm honey-flax whole wheat bread)
1 lb. white or claw crabmeat, picked free of any bits of shell
1/4 cup grated Parmesan (for coating)
2 Tbsp. or more vegetable oil (I used Smart Balance buttery spread)

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute` onion, pepper and garlic until pepper is limp, approximately 3 minutes. Add cream, mustard, egg, parsley, cayenne and only 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Gently fold in crabmeat.

Form mixture into 8 patties, about 1/2" thick. In a mixing bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs with the Parmesan. Pat this topping onto both sides of the patties. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

In a large, heavy skillet, using medium heat, combine the oil and remaining 2 Tbsp. butter (or use 1/4 cup Smart Balance buttery spread). When oil is hot, saute` crab cakes for about 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Only turn one time. These crab cakes can also be baked for 7-10 minutes in a 400F oven. Spoon a dollop of lemon dill sauce alongside each crab cake.

OLD BAY CRAB CAKES

This recipe is from the people who make Old Bay Seafood Seasoning. I think they know a thing or two about crabs and crabcakes. (Thanks to crabplace.com for publishing this.)

Old Bay Crab Cakes
2 slices bread, crusts removed
milk
1 lb. special crabmeat
1 egg, beaten
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. chopped parsley
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. mayonnaise
oil for frying

Break bread in small pieces and moisten with milk; combine with remaining ingredients. Shape into patties. Fry quickly in 3 or 4 Tbsp. hot oil until brown. Serves 6

When the Baltimore Spicy Company left the crab cake recipe off of the Old Bay Seafood Seasoning can, its switchboard lit up with callers wanting to know why.

BOOKBINDER'S CRAB CAKES

Bookbinder's Crab Cakes
1 Tbsp. green pepper
1 Tbsp. minced onions
1 Tbsp. minced celery
1 Tbsp. minced pimiento
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. butter
4 Tbsp. flour
1 cup milk
1 lb. jumbo lump crab meat
2 eggs, beaten
bread crumbs
Oil for frying

Mix vegetables and seasonings. Cook in butter on low heat for 10 minutes. Add flour and stir to blend well. Add milk and crab and mix. Chill and form into cakes; dip into egg and then into bread crumbs. Fry in hot oil. Serves 6.

Recipe courtesy of crabplace.com

KARSON'S INN CRAB CAKES

Karson's Inn, Baltimore, Maryland, prepares their crab cakes this way:

Karson's Inn Crab Cakes
2 lb. backfin crabmeat
2/3 cups breadcrumbs
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 egg
3 Tbsp. horseradish
2-1/2 Tbsp. finely chopped green pepper
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Fat or oil for frying

Remove cartilage from crabmeat. Place all ingredients in large bowl and toss lightly, but thoroughly. Do not break crab lumps. Form into 10 patties. Fry in deep fat at 360F until golden brown, about 6-8 minutes.

MARYLAND PAVILION CRAB CAKES, ADAPTED

This recipe came from the Maryland Pavilion at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. I was at that fair, not once, but at least 4 times. I ran bus trips, and my brother-in-law got passes from General Motors (where he worked t the time) that put all of us at the head of the line for the GM pavilion. That was the fair that introduced Belgian Waffles (actually the hit of the fair); and I remember eating them with delight and marveling with each scrumptious bite at the huge strawberries and rich, cake-like waffles smothered with whipped cream. I missed the crab cakes, but am so glad I found this recipe on crabplace.com. This ranks as my #1 crab cake recipe right now. These are really delicious, especially with the coating I used. The recipe calls for cracker crumbs, but I mixed crushed saltines with crushed crispy rice cereal and it worked really well to produce a crispy coating. The downside is you should fry these for the best texture; so just don't have them every week. I'm giving you the recipe as I adapted it and halved it; you can find the original at the crab place website. I highly recommend this recipe.

Maryland Pavilion Crab Cakes, half recipe, adapted
(Rating: 10 out of 10)
1 egg
1 Tbsp. Smart Balance Lite Mayonnaise
2 tsp. Grey Poupon spicy brown mustard
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1/8 tsp. sea salt
dash black pepper
1/2 tsp. liquid hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
1/2 lb. jumbo lump crab meat, cartilage removed
1/3 cup saltines, finely crushed
1/3 cup crispy rice cereal, finely crushed

In a medium bowl, whisk first 7 ingredients till well combined. Gently fold in crab meat. Form into 4 cakes; set aside. In a small bowl or on waxed paper combine the crackers and cereal which have been finely crushed. Pat the crumbs lightly onto the crab cakes. At this point, you can put the cakes in a dish, cover them with plastic wrap and refrigerate them until ready to cook. When ready to cook, heat oil in a heavy skillet. When oil is hot, add crab cakes and cook on each side for 3-4 minutes, til golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Makes 4 cakes.

HARBOUR HOUSE MARYLAND CRAB CAKES

It's amazing how many variations on crab cakes there are. This one is from the Harbour House Restaurant, Annapolis, Maryland. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm sure it's good. Let me know if you try it. Leave a comment at the end of any post.

Harbour House Maryland Crab Cakes
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten
5 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1 lb. crab meat, cartilage removed

Whisk all ingredients except crab meat in medium bowl, mixing well. Fold in crab meat lightly but thoroughly. Form into 6 cakes. Deep fry at 350F until golden brown, 2-3 minutes. Or fry lightly in olive oil in heavy pan, 3-4 minutes each side.

MARYLAND INN CRAB CAKES, adapted

This recipe is from the Maryland Inn, Annapolis, Maryland, and was published in "Maryland Seafood, Cookbook II, Favorite Recipes from Maryland Chefs," by the Maryland Dept. of Economic and Community Development. I reduced the salt a bit, changed the white bread to whole wheat, and reduced the fat content somewhat. Note that there is no mayo in this recipe. We like these crabcakes a lot, and I hope you do, too. If you try them, please come back to my site and leave a comment to rate them -- this will help other readers, and me too.

Maryland Inn Crab Cakes, adapted
1 lb. backfin crabmeat
1 egg
1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
1 slice whole wheat bread, crumbled
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Remove cartilage from crabmeat. In medium bowl, beat egg slightly. Add remaining ingredients, except for oil, and mix gently but thoroughly. Shape into 6 cakes. Saute cakes in a heated fry pan in the oil, until browned, about 4-5 minutes on each side. Or bake them in a preheated 400F oven, turning once halfway through (with the olive oil drizzled over them) for 15-20 minutes or till done. Deeelicious!