vegan crab cakes

By Jody

Ingredients

• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup celery
• 1/2 cup white onion
• 2 about 2 cups hearts of palm (I use the 14.5 oz jar from Trader Joes)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1-2 Tbsp vegetable broth
• 1/8 cup fine bread crumbs or crushed oyster crackers
• 1/2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• For the Garlic Aioli
• To make nut-free, use veganaise instead**
• 1 cup raw almonds (without skin*)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice or red wine vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Step 1

For the Garlic Aioli

Soak almonds for at least 2 hours. If you don't have that much time, you can simmer the almonds for about 10 minutes to help them soften. If your almonds still have the skin on them, this will also help them loosen so you can easily remove them.
Put the almonds in a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth. This could be up to 2-3 minutes or more. Stop the processor every minute or so to scrap down the edges in order to make sure all chunks get blended in to create a smooth, creamy sauce.
Pour the sauce into another container and set aside.
Clean the food processor bowl to prepare the "crab" cake mixture.

For the "Crab" Cakes

Prepare the onions by removing the skin and clean the celery.
Add onion, celery and garlic to the food processor.
Pulse a 5-6 times to chop the celery and onions into small pieces.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet.
Add the onion celery garlic mixture to the pan and saute for 2 minutes.
Drain the hearts of palm and add to the food processor.
Pulse a few times until it creates a chunky shredded texture.
Add the hearts of palm to the skillet.
Add the Old Bay seasoning, salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp veggie broth and stir until combined.
Cook over medium-low heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat.
Add the breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup of the garlic aioli.
Stir to get a feel for the texture. If you want the crab cakes to be more moist, add more aioli. If you want them to be more bready, add more bread crumbs and possibly more veggie broth. Either way, you want them to be a thick enough texture that you can form them into "crab" cake patties.
Using a spatula or spoon, divide the mixture into four equal parts and form a patty out of each section, setting aside on a plate or wax paper.
Wipe out the skillet, then heat another tablespoon of olive oil.
Once the oil is hot, carefully add the "crab" cakes to the pan.
Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the edge is golden and crispy.
Turn and cook another 2-3 minutes on the other side.
Serve fresh out of the skillet.