Tag Archives: lemon

Crabby Cakes

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For most of us (ok, maybe I’m just speaking about myself here) but I never dare dreamed I could make a crab cake. That was what the yearly vacation to Philips Seafood and Steak house in Ocean City, MD was for. Well, I recently faced my fear and tried it out. And guess what? It wasn’t that hard at all! Most of the ingredients were already on my shelves. I picked up a few extras from the store and I was ready to go.

  • 1 egg (this is a must since you need glue for the crab cake)
  • ¾ cup Panko bread crumbs (if doing Italian breadcrumbs cut down to ½ cup since they are denser)
  • 1lb lump crab meat (make sure there are no remaining shells)
  • 1 large or 2 small stalk of celery finely chopped (make sure they are tiny, the celery is great for the added crunch but you don’t want chunks to overpower the crab)
  • 1 teaspoon old bay (or seasoned salt or tony Caceres seasoning, you get the point)
  • A pinch of crushed chili flakes, if you like more heat do cayenne pepper
  • A pinch of paprika for color is optional
  • Splash or teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (you could technically use ground or yellow but I think Dijon adds a specific tang that I wouldn’t mess with)
  • 2 ½ tablespoon mayo
  • 2 or 2 ½ tbsp. chopped fresh parsley (can’t be substitute for dried, if you don’t have or like just leave it out)

Refrigerate the mixture for 1 hr. (this is so they don’t fall apart when pan searing, realize this is a legit crab cake. Crab being the star of the show with minimal filler so when cold they won’t crumble in pan or when you have to flip them) and then pan sear for 4 min on each side (makes 4 large or 6 appetizer portion crab cakes) serve w parsley leaves & lemon wedges to class it up.

Oh and check out Sauce Boss for an easy, fridge friendly dipping sauce.

Happy eating, XO.

Crab-Cakes

Wild Watercress Salad

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Watercress is usually pretty tasteless, right? Not anymore! Citrus, sweet, and savory all play leading roles in this watercress salad.

  • 4 cups watercress (about 1 bunch)
  • 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced fennel bulb (that is about 1 small bulb, and the thinly isn’t just so it looks pretty, it also monitors how much you get in one bite because fennel is a strong flavor)
  • 3 oranges sectioned and sliced (if you prefer less citrus or sweet cut down to 2)

Now for the dressing (in a time crunch, any light vinaigrette or dressing would work, but this one is damn delish and easy):

  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice (aim for fresh, but bottle stuff won’t kill it)
  • 1.5 tablespoons EVOO
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (to mix it up you can use coarsely ground mustard since you are the boss)
  • 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
  • Dash of sea salt (regular salt is OK, but it’s a bit too fine when trying to flavor a dressing)
  • Dash of black pepper (don’t be a bum, use freshly ground, it makes a world of difference)

Whisk and pour on top. Don’t pre-make this it will all separate and be nasty. Make right before serving, it takes 5 minutes.

Also note, this salad like our others, has the multitude of taste bud components to fit that “sultry” feel we swear salads can accomplish.

Fennel: crunch & the anise flavor

Orange: citrus & soft

Maple syrup: sweet & smooth

Lemon juice & Mustard: tangy

This is important to know so you can liven up any boring salad or also substitute, add, or remove ingredients you like better (e.g. throwing in some beets for color & softness or some nuts for an extra crunch element).

Happy eating, XO.

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