CRAB CAKES — THE EASY WAY
Crabs require a bunch of work. It doesn’t matter whether you are eating them whole as part of a Beaufort Stew, picking out the meat for crab bisque or some other type of soup, or making crab cakes. Getting to the meat requires real effort. Never mind that: The end results are worth every bit of the trouble. In the case of crab cakes, my thinking is that simplicity rules supreme, and you want the delicate taste of the hard-won meat of crabs to take prominence. Most crab cake recipes are long on seasonings like Old Bay, but that tends to hidE some of the flavor.
You’ll need:
1 pound crab meat
1/4 to 1/3 cup crushed Ritz or saltine crackers (if the latter, cut the amount of salt in half)
1 small onion or 3 green onions, finely chopped
1 egg
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Flour for dusting the crab cakes
Thoroughly mix all ingredients except the flour together in a bowl. Pat out individual cakes by hand and dust each one in flour before placing in the frying pan. Heat oil (peanut or canola) to medium and place the cakes in pan once it is hot. Cook until brown on bottom (four to five minutes) and then turn. Cook and additional four minutes and serve immediately with your favorite sauce.
RED BEANS AND RICE WITH VENISON SAUSAGE
Venison can be prepared as many types of sausage, but for this recipe ground sausage made with some beef suet or featuring a blend of pork sausage and ground venison works best. It can be a main dish served with cornbread or hushpuppies, a breakfast offering with eggs, or a hearty side dish.
You’ll need:
1 cup regular long-grain rice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chopped sweet onion
1 bay leaf
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried parsley
¼ cup chopped ham
1 cup cooked bulk venison sausage, crumbled and drained after cooking
1 cup low-salt chicken broth
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and black (or red) pepper to taste
Prepare rice as directed on package label and keep warm. In a large pan, heat olive oil and add celery, garlic, and onion. Cook until tender-crisp and add herbs, beans, ham, cooked sausage, chicken broth and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer for 10-15 minutes and serve atop hot rice.
Alternatively, mix with rice before serving.
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