When you make your favorite recipes or when you decide to cook from scratch instead of buying ready-made, think quality ingredients.  With experience you will learn how to substitute ingredients so that you can make your favorite foods gluten or dairy-free–and a lot healthier for you.    These crab cakes are an example–the recipe on the can of real crab meat was a beginning. Instead of bread crumbs, I used ground sunflower seeds and a little arrowroot flour and some nutritional yeast.  I had on hand homemade mayo (follow link to Waldorf salad recipe which contains the mayo recipe) made with extra-virgin olive oil/sunflower oil and eggs from pasture-raised healthy chickens.  And, of course, I used a good quality oil for browning.  The Emeril’s Essence is a fantastic spice blend for seafood and eggs–you can either mix some yourself by following the link and using the original recipe or you can buy it already mixed.

We don’t eat shell fish very often because of the pollution of  coastal waters (toxic metals are common contaminants) but on occasion we make an exception.  So these are a real treat when we make them– make enough to freeze some for a quick meal when you don’t have time to cook.  Serve with a mix of equal parts organic ketchup and prepared horseradish.

Approximately 8 crab cakes

16 oz. can of real crab meat (this is a refrigerated item) (claw meat is fine to use)

1 medium-sized onion, chopped fine

3-4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 beaten egg

2 Tbsp. organic mayonnaise

1 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard

1 tsp. tamari (organic and wheat-free)

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. hot sauce

1/2 c. ground sunflower seeds (use a blender to grind hulled seeds)

1 Tbsp. arrowroot flour

1 tsp. Emeril’s Essence

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Saute the onion in 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet until softened and slightly browned.  Take off the heat and set aside.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk the egg well and then add the mayo, mustard, lemon juice, tamari, and hot sauce.  Blend thoroughly with the whisk. Set aside.

In a 1-cup measuring cup measure the sunflower seed meal and then add the nutritional yeast, arrowroot flour, and Emeril’s Essence. Mix these dry ingredients well.  Set aside.

Drain and discard the water from the crab meat in the can.  Add the crab meat to the egg mixture.  Mix well and break up the crab meat so that the pieces are all bite-sized.  Add the sauteed onions and mix again.  Add the dry ingredients plus the salt and black pepper.  Mix thoroughly.  Form the cakes by pressing spoonfuls of the mixture in a 1/2 cup measuring cup.  Tap the cup on its bottom over a plate to get the cake out–now you are ready to brown the cakes. If you want to freeze some, this is the time to do it.  (Later when you remove frozen cakes, just put them in a toaster oven at 350 for about 30 minutes–since they are frozen this is the best way to cook them.)

In a large skillet on medium heat pour the remaining olive oil.  Once the oil is hot (but not smoking–don’t let it burn!) place the crab cakes.  Brown for about 4-5 minutes on each side.  Serve immediately.