Crab Cakes - Physical and Chemcial Changes

When I make this recipe, I always think of the spring break I spent with my sister when we took her 3 month old twins up to Washington D.C. I was somewhat of a newly wed, recent college grad and still unemployed. My sister, Baby Maker (come on and have one more), and I carried the twins to all of the major tourist sites in slings. We were also in search of the best crab cake sandwiches. I had never had one before, but she swore by them. She was right, as always, and thus began my love affair with crab cakes.

I thought before trying this recipe that seafood was best enjoyed in a restaurant, particularly something as difficult as crab. All seafood, with the exception of shrimp, has always intimidated me in the kitchen. It might have something to do with growing up in West Texas and only rarely traveling to see the ocean. This recipe comes from my other sister, the Lib Lawyer. I have made some changes to the original recipe to give it more of a kick.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb jumbo lump crab

2 green onions, chopped
1 T fresh parsley leaves, chopped

1/4 of a jalapeno, diced (more if you like it really spicy)

4T unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4t old bay

salt and pepper

4 T fine dry breadcrumbs

2T mayo

1 egg

3T olive oil

3 dashes of frank's hot sauce

Begin by rinsing and draining jumbo lump crab meat and placing into a medium sized bowl.

To the crab meat, add the chopped parsley, chopped green onions and diced jalapeno. I put in half of a jalapeno because my husband and I like it hot. Well, it was a little too hot. To be safe just dice up 1/4 of a jalapeno. You might also like to saute the jalapeno before putting it into the mixture. This would take away all possibility that the jalapenos would be crunchy at the end of the cooking process.

Next, add the flour, bread crumbs, and seasonings. Lightly combine with your fingers. Did you know that 4 T is equal to 1/4c? For some reason that is the only kitchen conversion I can ever remember. It is a useful one.

To the mixture, add the mayonnaise, frank's hot sauce, egg, and oil. I don't know Frank, but I love his sauce. Especially on wings! Come to think of it I have never actually met anyone named Frank - new item on my bucket list.

Combine all ingredients, making sure that you do not over mix. At this point if the mixture seems too wet, just add more bread crumbs. You want to be able to form the crab mixture into a ball.

Uh Oh! Here comes the chemistry. This is actually one of the first things I taught in Chemistry class, right after how to format their notebook. I am obsessive, I know, I love it.

A physical change is a change that occurs when no new substance is formed. There are several examples of physical changes that we have already come across in this recipe. For example, chopping the produce is a physical change - still green onions. Another example would be mixing the ingredients. The ingredients have not changed, they are just in a mixture now.

Now it is time to make the crab cakes. To insure that all of the crab cakes will be the same size and have consistent cooking times measure out the crab mixture in a 1/3c. measuring spoon/cup (what is that thing really?).

Once you have the right amount of crab mixture, roll it into a ball and cover in additional bread crumbs. Use whatever bread crumbs you have, seasoned or unseasoned.

Place the ball crab mixture onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Lightly press down on the mixture to form the classic crab cake shape.

You could also use a cookie cutter to make the the crab mixture into a shape. This would be perfect for a Valentine's Day dinner. I made this one for Mr. T after a long day of work. For some reason it was the only crab cake left over. No good dead goes unpunished. Update: He didn't take it for work today for lunch either. Maybe he has something against heart shaped food?

Allow the crab cakes to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, but no more than 24 hours. You now have time to vacuum, dust, or give your stinky dog a bath. Or you can just do what I did and watch Oprah while folding laundry! I am great at multitasking.

Now it is time to make the sauce.

Ingredients:

1/4 c mayonnaise

1/4 c sour cream

2 t chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, minced

1 small garlic clove, minced

2 tsp fresh cilantro, chopped

1 tsp lime juice

Place all ingredients in a small bowl.

Combine all of the ingredients. This picture does not do the sauce justice. It is very spicy but also has the tang of lime juice and the freshness of cilantro. I wanted to say that the cilantro is also "earthy" but that just sounds too foodie for me.

You could also skip this part completely and buy a remoulade sauce at the store. That is the easy way out, but I'm not judging!

After you have let the crab cakes rest in the fridge, it is time to get them cooking! I wait until I get the call from Mr. T that he is almost home to start them. They really are best right out of the oven.

Heat more olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. You want to brown both sides of the crab cakes. Approximately 2 minutes per side.

The process of browning the cakes in the skillet and baking them in the oven is a chemical change. Chemical changes are easy to identify. If there is a change in color or a new product is formed it is a chemical change. Other signs of chemical changes in the kitchen would be produce rotting, change in odor (for better or worse), frying, and baking.



Be sure not to burn the crab cakes. These are a little more done than my liking, not that it would stop me from eating them!

After browning both sides place on a cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 5-10 more minutes. If you put in fresh jalapenos cook the cakes a bit longer. Do you see the cute heart shaped one in the back?

Enjoy! I served the crab cakes with a Cesar salad and bread.

I made some changes from the original recipe given to me by my sister, the Lib Lawyer. This is a much spicier version. If you would like to try this recipe with out the heat simply remove the jalapenos and franks hot sauce from the crab cake mixture. You might also want to add less chipolte in adobo to the sauce.