DEVILED CRAB CAKES
The Bounty Of Central Florida by Valerie Hart
Yield: 6 Cakes
1 pound (2 cups) cooked crab meat
1/2 cup mayonnaise, or more to bind
1/2 cup roughly crushed saltine crackers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/8 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika, or more to taste
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon white horseradish
4 tablespoons chopped yellow pepper
Vegetable spray
Fine noodles or angel hair pasta to accompany, if desired
Chopped cilantro leaves
Chopped chives or scallion greens
1. Pick through crab for shells and cartilage and set aside.
2. Combine mayonnaise, crushed saltines, salt, pepper, ginger, hot paprika, lemon juice, horseradish and chopped pepper. Carefully fold in crab meat.
3. Wash an empty tuna can, 3-inches in diameter. Fill the can to the top and turn upside down onto a hot griddle or non-stick shallow pan that has been sprayed with vegetable oil. Release the crab cake.
Do this 5 more times. Cook the cakes over medium-high heat until very brown. Turn over carefully to brown on the other side. Or, set the griddle under the broiler rather than turning the cakes over to more easily keep their perfect shapes.
4. Sprinkle chopped cilantro over the tops. Decorate the outer edge of the plate with the chopped scallions.
Note: For a complete dinner, surround the crab cakes with angel hair pasta tossed in chicken broth flavored with salt and pepper to taste.
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