Spicy Dungeness Crab Cakes

These crab cakes have a little spice with a kick and are a delicacy, especially when they are made with our local Dungeness crab. I usually buy one or two freshly cooked crabs and my husband cleans them meticulously, pulling out every little tidbit of crabmeat he can find. What a nice guy. Normally, we have crab with a salad and some fresh crusty bread. It is the perfect meal with a glass of Chardonnay. Life during crab season is good.

Then I came across an old page from my beloved Gourmet magazine that had a recipe for Louisiana-style crab cakes. Of course, I had to make it. Crab cakes are a real treat for me and I often order them in restaurants. There are many varieties, as each region has its own way of making crab cakes and using their own local crab. I am still dreaming of Maryland crab cakes made with Maryland blue crab. The secret to any good crab cake is using big lumps of crabmeat that retain its form through the cooking process. That way, you will bite into mostly crabmeat with some added flavor.

There are all kind of sauces that are served with crab cakes. I like a good tartar sauce or a remoulade. This time, I choose to make crab cakes for dinner with creamed leeks, so I didn't need any extra sauce. There is nothing wrong with a citrusy green salad and a crab cake.  I can envision making mini-crab cakes, served on lettuce with a dollop of tartar sauce. What is your favorite way to eat crab cakes?

If you are looking for another special dish to prepare, try my crepes with salmon and fennel filling. In Italy, this dish is called Cannelloni Ripieni di Salmone and the crepes are called crespelle. This could be an elegant dish to celebrate the arrival of spring especially when served with fresh asparagus.

How about something sweet that is easy to make and tastes good? Try this Italian shortbread tart called Fregolotta. Pretend you are eating a slice in a little cafe somewhere in Italy.

recipe for salmon and fennel stuffed crepes

recipe for fregolotta tart

This recipe makes 4 crab cakes and it doesn’t take more than 30 minutes to make if you buy the fresh crabmeat. Make sure your crabmeat has large pieces in it. Carefully pick over the crabmeat to remove any small pieces of shells. I finely grind the saltine crackers in my blender

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Ingredients:

1/4 cup finely chopped red onions
1/3 cup finely chopped red and yellow mini peppers
​3 TBS finely chopped celery 
3 TBS butter 
1 egg
1 TBS crème fraîche or sour cream
½ tsp dry mustard 
½ tsp Worcestershire sauce 
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp salt 
2 TBS thinly sliced green onions
16 saltine crackers
½ Ib crabmeat
1 TBS canola oil

Directions:

Heat one  tablespoon of butter in a frying pan and sauté the onions, peppers, and celery over low heat, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are softened.

Whisk the egg, créme fraîche, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne and salt in a bowl. Now stir in the green onions and ¼ cup of the ground crackers. Carefully fold in the crabmeat.
 
Form into 4 cakes and coat with ground saltine crackers. There will be some leftover ground crackers.

Heat the oil and 2 tablespoon of butter in a frying pan. Fry the crab cakes until golden brown for about 8 minutes, turning them over once.  
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Guten Appetit!
recipe by Gourmet Magazine
by©Sunnycovechef.com