Crab Cakes with Ginger-Citrus Vinaigrette

By elvia_saucedo

Serves 8 servings or 16, if petite

Ingredients

• 1 pound cooked blue crab meat*
• 1/4 cup green onions minced
• 1/4 cup finely chopped celery
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper, cored and seeded
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• l large egg, slightly beaten
• 1/3 cup fresh-made bread crumbs**
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• Salt and white pepper to taste
• 1 cup fine dried bread crumbs
• 4 tablespoons butter
• * If you can't get fresh crab, look for the pasteurized crab usually sold in the refrigerated case of your supermarket or fish store.
• ** Child out Making Homemade Bread Crumbs (Look for recipe saved in this program titled BREAD CRUMBS)
• Ginger-Citrus Vinaigrette
• 8 cups mixed salad greens

Details

Servings 8

Preparation

Step 1

Carefully clean the crab meat of any shells or cartilage; set aside. In a large frying pan over medium heat, melt butter; add onion, celery, and red pepper; saute until approx 8 mins or until they are translucent. Stir in mustard and cayenne pepper; cook and additional 1 to 2 mins stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl and let cool completely. When cool, add the crab meat, mayonnaise, egg, bread crumbs, lemon zest, parsley, salt, and pepper; gently fold together with a rubber spatula until mixture just clings together (do not over mix).
Divide crab mixture into 8 portions and shape each into a flat, round cake about 1/2" thick. Place the dried bread crumbs into a shallow pie plate. Working with one cake at a time, lightly coat the cakes with crumbs. Place onto a baking sheet lined either parchment or wax paper; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hrs or overnight (the cold will firm up the cakes so that they will not break up when fried).
In a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat, heat butter until hot but not smoking (add more butter if needed). Gently lay chilled crab cakes onto bottom of the pan; slowly fry crab cakes approx 4 mins on ea side until crisp and golden brown, turning once only with a spatula.

Ginger-Citrus Vinaigrette
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Finely grated zest of 1 lime
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
1 jalapeno chile pepper, seeded and minced
Granulated sugar to taste
Salt to taste

In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, ginger, and jalapeno chile pepper. Season to taste with sugar and salt.