Baked Crab Cakes

I have decided that my favorite food in the entire world is crab cakes. I love crab, and having just the meat in a delicately fried cake makes what would be a meal of cracking and digging up shells a whole different experience. In this recipe, I tried a healthier way of cooking them...instead of frying the cakes, I baked them! The secret to this recipe is the quality of the crab meat. You can find canned, frozen, or refrigerated crab meat in the supermarket. My favorite is Phillip's brand lump crab meat, which is usually found in plastic containers in the refrigerated section. It is pricey, but for this one in a while treat, it is so worth it!

Ingredients:

1 8 oz package of lump crab meat

1 egg

2 tablespoons of mayonnaise

1/2 cup of seasoned breadcrumbs (you may use panko breadcrumbs instead)

1/2 teaspoon of old bay seasoning

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1/4 of a red bell pepper, chopped finely

1/2 celery stalk, chopped finely

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400F. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the egg, mayonnaise, 1/4 cup of the breadcrumbs, the old bay seasoning, and the lemon juice. Mix well, and then add the bell pepper and celery. Once combined, gently fold in the crab meat. 

Seasoning before the crab and veggies are added

Crab meat, bell peppers, and celery

Pour the rest of the breadcrumbs in a small plate. Take handfuls of the crab mixture, form balls, and then press gently onto the breadcrumbs on the plate. Turn the cake over to flatten and coat the other side. Continue until all of the cakes are formed. (This recipe makes about 8 small cakes, but can easily be doubled to make more.) Coat the bottom of a baking pan with the olive oil, and place the cakes on the pan. 

Place in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cakes are browned and crispy. Gently flip the cakes over and bake for another 3-5 minutes or until they are crispy on the other side. Enjoy!

(For anyone who would like to make crab cakes the traditional way: Make the cakes as directed above, then add 3-4 tablespoons of oil to a frying pan and fry the cakes over medium heat on each side until golden brown and crispy.)