Michele's crab cakes and shrimp skewers

Michele Howard Special to The Village News

This recipe is inspired from a Williams-Sonoma the Best of Taste recipes, but with my twist. Do not substitute any ingredient. This is the best recipe ever as it is all crab and no filler. My company and family loved them!

In addition to my own changes, I doubled the recipe because Costco has a container of fresh crab meat which is one pound. I used the exact ingredients, Sambal Oelek chile sauce and Panko bread crumbs, but I made the patties a little larger and did not measure sesame seeds. Instead, I just sprinkled the cakes with sesame seeds from the container.

Our crab cakes dinner also featured the following: shrimp skewers (barbeque skewers after marinating shrimp in the same chili sauce, sesame oil and reduced sodium soy sauce and fresh lemon), grilled fresh sliced pineapple, wild rice medley (use rice cooker), and a fresh veggie sauté.

To make the fresh veggie sauté, pan sauté in extra virgin olive oil two-inch pieces of asparagus, zucchini, yellow crook neck squash, and red bell pepper. Toward end of cooking, add fresh sliced garlic, one shallot sliced, one tablespoon Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning, and one tablespoon smoked paprika.

Spicy Crab Cakes

• 1/2 lb fresh lump crab meat, picked over
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon Asian chili sauce, such as Sambal Oelek
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup Panko Japanese bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesames seeds
• lemon wedges for garnish

1. In a bowl, combine crab meat with mayonnaise, chile sauce, lemon juice, sesame oil, egg, salt and 1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs. Stir to blend. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

1. Remove from refrigerator. Shape one heaping tablespoonful mixture into a patty about one-and-a-half inches in diameter. It will be fragile. Place on a plate. Repeat with remaining mixture. Note: When forming the patties, the cakes should barely hold together. If made in large batches, keep the patties chilled to prevent from falling apart when cooking them.

1. Pour remaining 3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs into a shallow bowl. Carefully dip each patty into Panko to coat evenly. Return to plate.

1. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, fry patties until golden brown about one minute on each side. Using a slotted metal spatula , transfer to paper towels to drain briefly. Serve at once, sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds and garnished with lemon wedges.