Crab Cakes With Bechamel

Crab cakes are always a popular item on my catering menu. The trick to good crab cakes is to go heavy on the crab and easy on everything else. The spices you add to the dish are just for accent, and the bread is just for texture. Here's how I do it. Try this recipe just like this, and then fiddle with the spices to your liking:

• 1 can jumbo lump crabmeat (16 oz.)
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp. dry parsley
• 1 tbsp. dry sweet basil
• 1 pinch salt and pepper
• 1 tsp. of garlic powder
• 1 tsp. fennel powder
• 4 tbsp. unseasoned bread crumbs
• 1 pinch paprika

Technique
Combine all ingredients and FOLD until it comes together. Avoid breaking up the lumps of crab.

If the mixture is too wet, add small amounts of bread crumbs until the right consistency is achieved. The mix should not be mush, it should be gently mortared pieces of of crab. Shape into hockey pucks. This recipe produces four 5 oz. or eight 3 oz. cakes.

Put the cakes in a baking dish lightly coated with extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkle them with a bit of paprika. Bake 10-12 min. in a pre-heated oven at 450 degrees.

Serve with fresh lemon wedges or bechamel.

Bechamel

• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 12 oz. heavvy cream
• 8 oz. of pecorino romano
• 1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg

In a nonstick skillet, combine and stir all ingredients. Cook all of the ingredients at a medium flame until it thickens a little (not too thick). In a plate pour some generous amount of bechamel and lay the crabcakes on top to serve. Pour a splash of bechamel on top of each cake and lay on a piece of roasted red pepper for accent (if you've got it handy).