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Potato Crab Cakes with Grilled Scallion Creme Fraiche
A minor obsession over a period of several years was our search for the crab cake recipe.
A half dozen or more recipes were tried, and each in its own way was terrific.
But this one really stood out.
It entails a bit more effort than most of the others,
but much of the work can--and should--be done an hour or two ahead of time, so that only
the browning and baking of the crab cakes needs to be done immediately before serving.
| Grilled Scallion Creme Fraiche |
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| 1/2 c. heavy cream |
1 T. sour cream |
| 1 bunch scallions, trimmed |
1/2 t. olive oil |
| salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste |
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| Potato Crab Cakes |
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| 1 large Russet potato, peeled, about 1/2 pound |
2 T. olive oil |
| 1 small red onion, diced |
1 sweet red pepper, diced |
| 2 cloves garlic, chopped |
1 T. chopped fresh basil |
| 8-10 oz. lump crab meat |
2 T. Dijon mustard |
| 4 dashes Tabasco sauce |
4 dashes Worcestershire sauce |
| salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste |
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- The night before, mix the cream and sour cream in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap,
and let the mixture sit out at room temperature overnight. Then refrigerate, covered.
- Brush the scallions with the olive oil. Grill them under a broiler.
Allow them to cool slightly, before chopping them coarsely and mixing them into the cream.
Season with salt and pepper and return to the refrigerator.
- Meanwhile, put the potato in a sauce pan with salted water. Bring the water to a boil,
and allow it to simmer for 20-25 minutes, until the potato is tender. Allow it to cool,
then grate the potato coarsely.
- While the potato is cooking, heat a tablespoon of the oil in a skillet. Add the onion,
red pepper, garlic, and basil. Cook until the onions wilt. Allow it to cool.
- About an hour before you're ready to serve, mix the cooked vegetables, the crab,
and the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and set it aside.
- Twenty to thirty minutes before serving, preheat the oven to 400o and heat
the remaining oil in a large skillet. Shape the crab mix into 8 small cakes and brown them quickly
in the skillet. (Depending upon the skillet's size, you'll probably do only three or
four at a time.)
- Transfer the browned crab cakes to a large baking dish. When all of the crab cakes
have browned and been transferred to the baking dish, place it in the oven for 8 minutes.
Serve two cakes per person, with a generous dollop of the creme fraiche spooned over
(or beside) each.
4 servings
Source: Pierre Franey's Cooking in America
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