Crab Cakes

If you're in the Washington, D.C. area and not eating some kind of local seafood, you're either not a fan or you're crazy! It doesn't get much fresher than getting the crab meat from Maryland, and while it seems as though there are as many recipes as there are crabs being pulled out of the water, the key to a moist, full-flavored cake is always to handle the crabmeat as little as possible. Makes 8 medium crab cakes.

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 2 tbls. mayonnaise
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp. dry mustard
• ½ tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbls. dried parsley, crumbled, or ¼ cup fresh chopped
• 1 lb. jumbo lump crab meat, cleaned of bone and cartilage and pressed gently to remove excess moisture
• ½ cup breadcrumbs or Panko crumbs, or 6-8 saltines, crushed fine
• 4 tbls. butter
• 4 tbls. olive oil

Preparation:

In a mixing bowl, whisk egg, mayonnaise, cayenne, mustard, salt, pepper and parsley. Add crab meat and breadcrumbs, gently folding until combined. Shape mixture into 8 cakes, about ½-inch thick. Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.

Melt butter with oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until it just starts to sizzle. Add crab cakes and fry 5 minutes on each side until golden. Pat briefly on paper towels and serve.