Rosie Makes Crab Cakes

  When I make crab cakes, I go by the maxim "less is more," meaning less filler and more crab makes for a better cake.  Also, I'm not a big fan of mayonnaise, so that's not going into my mixture as a binder.

Crab meat where I live is running $18/lb for claw meat.  And claw meat is the cheapest available.  I think it's sweeter too and more flavorful, so that's what I always use.  

I'm only making 4 cakes today, so I'm just using 10 ounces of the crab meat, saving the rest for a delicious dip.

Rosie's Crab Cakes

10 oz. crab meat 

1 TB minced red pepper

1 TB minced celery

1 TB chopped parsley

1 egg

2 tsp Dijon mustard

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 tsp Lea & Perrins

1/2 tsp Tabasco

sprinkling of Old Bay seasoning

Add pepper, celery, and parsley to crab meat, mixing gently so as not to break up the meat.

Beat egg with mustard, lemon, Lea & Perrins, Tabasco, and Old Bay.  Pour into crab mixture, again mixing gently.

Divide crab meat mixture evenly among 4 tins and press in. 

Chill for at least 30 minutes.

Combine equal parts Panko bread crumbs and flour.  Grind some pepper into flour mixture or use Lawry's Pepper Seasoning.

Coat both sides of crab cake in crumb mixture.

Film a medium sized skillet with oil and add 2 TB butter.  Medium high heat.

When butter gets sizzly and foamy, add in crab cakes.  Sauté until golden brown on each side.

 

Serve with my apple/cranberry slaw, lemon wedges, more parsley, and my remoulade sauce.

Rosie's Remoulade 

1/3 cup mayonnaise  (I know I just said I don't care for mayo, but sometimes you gotta.)

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp sweet relish

1 tsp minced dill pickle

Now that's a crab cake!

Oh...  Almost forgot.  The dip.

I had 6 ounces of crab meat left over so I decided to make my delicious crab meat dip.  I never bother to measure, so the proportions can be different every time, but not to worry, it's ALL GOOD!

Rosie's Crab Meat Dip

6 oz. crab meat

2 TB unsalted butter

heaping TB Brie cheese

heaping TB cream cheese

juice of one lemon

2 tsp Lea & Perrins

a few shakes of Tabasco

splash or more of sherry, to taste

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter, Brie, and cream cheese, stirring occasionally.  Stir in the lemon, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco.  Gently fold in the crab meat so as not to break up the lumps.  Heat through.  Add a splash or two of sherry.

Serve with an assortment of crackers for dipping.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OR, serve in buttered and baked wonton cups.

Here's HOW.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OR, serve in a hollowed-out boule with the hollowed out part torn and toasted for dipping. 

If you'd like to gussy it up a bit, add some minced red peppers and sliced scallions and a dusting of paprika.

Enjoy.

Crab Meat Delight.

 

 

 Here's a delicious crab meat concoction I make.  I usually serve this as a dip but today,

 it's going into wonton cups.

 

 

Rosie's Crab Meat Dip

1/2 pound crab meat (I use claw.  Cheaper and sweeter.)

2 TB butter

2 TB brie
2 TB cream cheese

juice of one lemon

1 TB Lea & Perrins

1 TB sherry

In a small sauce pan, thoroughly melt butter, brie, and cream cheese.

Stir in lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.

Carefully mix in crab meat, being gentle so as not to break up the lumps.

Heat through.  Give it a splash of sherry, or more, to taste.

For the wontons, brush muffin tins with melted butter or you can use a spray.  (I always use unsalted butter.)

Press in wontons to make a fluted cup and brush with melted butter.

Bake at 350° for about 7 minutes or until golden brown.

Fill with crab mixture.

 Enjoy.

Rosie Make Coconut Fried Shrimp With Pineapple Dipping Sauce.

 

  I love coconut fried shrimp and I've made it many times.  Sometimes with a wet batter - beer, club soda, or buttermilk.  Sometimes not.  But this three-stage station is the easiest way to make it. 

 

Only three containers to contend with and wash up, and it's the simplest way to do it.

Use jumbo shrimp for this recipe.

Step 1:  Dredge shrimp in mixture of flour and corn starch.  Half and half.  I save Chinese takeout containers for this.  Add a few shrimp at a time and shake shake shake.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2:  Run the floured shrimp through beaten eggs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3:  Shake shake shake in a container of 3 parts coconut, 1 part panko bread crumbs, and 1 part crushed Ritz crackers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have a large, heavy, deep pot with a couple inches peanut oil heated to 375°.  Carefully put in 5-6 shrimp, one at a time.  Do not crowd the pan.  Keep shrimp separated.  Fry about 60-75 seconds until golden brown.

 

 

Remove from oil and drain on rack.  Let oil come back up to temp before starting the next batch.  

Oil temperature is key.  Get an instant-read laser thermometer.  It makes life easy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the dipping sauce:

3 slices pineapple, finely chopped (I usually use a can of crushed, but I was out.)

2 TB pineapple juice from the canned slices

1/3 cup orange marmalade

1 TB soy sauce

1 TB Dijon mustard

1 TB horseradish

Mix all together in a small saucepan and heat over low until simmer.  Taste test and add more of anything you want.  This is just a starting point.  Adjust as you like.  Serve warm on the side for dipping.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy.

Rosie's Apple Coleslaw.

 

  Coleslaw is like potato salad.  Everybody's got their own recipe for it.  But I've been coming back to this particular combination time and time again.  Try it.  You'll like it.  Just the right amount of sweet; just the right amount of tangy.

 

 Rosie's Coleslaw

3 cups shredded cabbage

4 baby carrots, julienned

1 small red pepper, diced

1 coarsely peeled, chopped apple

1 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)

Combine all ingredients.

 

Dressing 

1 TB cider vinegar

1 TB sugar

1/4 cup mayo

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup buttermilk

salt and pepper, to taste 

Mix all ingredients until smooth.

Pour dressing over slaw ingredients and toss to coat evenly.

Enjoy.

 

Rosie Makes Tabbouleh With A Twist.

 

  One of my favorite things to make in the summertime is tabbouleh.  Tabbouleh is a Middle Eastern salad made with bulgur wheat, perfectly ripe tomatoes, lemon, and fresh herbs (mint and parsley).  This Lebanese dish is fragrant, fresh, and refreshing - a perfect summer dish.  

 

 

That said, I'm going to take out one of the main ingredients - the tomato - and swap it for another wonderful summer fruit - watermelon.  It's Rosie's twist on traditional tabbouleh.  And I think you'll like it as much as the original.

Tabbouleh is another one of those recipes where the amounts of the ingredients are pretty much up to you and your tastes.  I'm giving you basic guidelines here;  if you want to adjust, taste-test and go for it.

By the way, if you're not familiar with bulgur wheat, it's partially cooked whole-grain kernels of wheat.  It has a nutty flavor and chewy texture.  Even though it's already been parboiled, you still need to cook it before using it.  Cooking times depend on the type of wheat you get, so always check the package for the directions.  The way I do it is put 1 part dry bulgur in a bowl and pour 2 parts boiling water over top.  Cover the bowl and let it sit about an hour.  Pour off any water that isn't absorbed.  Fork-fluff.  Generally, 1 part dried bulgur will yield 3 parts "cooked."

 

Rosie's Waternelon Tabbouleh

1 cup bulgur wheat, "cooked" as above, drained, and fluffed

2 cups cubed watermelon, seeds removed (Do I really need to tell you to remove the seeds?)

1 small cucumber, peeled and diced

2 green onions, sliced

2 TB chopped basil

1/4 cup chopped parsley (I prefer Italian parsley over curly leaf parsley.)

1/2 cup chopped mint

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Mix all ingredients.

Toss with dressing.

 

Dressing: 

juice of 2 lemons

1/4 balsamic vinegar

1/2 - 3/4 cup neutral- flavored oil (I use Bertolli's extra light olive oil.)

kosher salt, to taste

Mix lemon juice and vinegar.  Slowly whisk in oil to make an emulsion.  Salt to taste.

Pour over tabbouleh ingredients and toss to coat evenly.  Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.  Fluff up and stir before serving.

Scoop up with chips or crackers or wrap up in a lettuce leaf.

Again, as I said before, this is your starting point.  If you want to add more flavors, do so.

  Here are your basic tabbouleh ingredients:

Add in dressing.

Toss.

And serve.

Enjoy.