Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
I started a tradition when my husband and I got married and we began hosting Thanksgiving at our house.  It’s kind of unusual, but now everyone requests it every year.
Before dinner, yes we have dinner at my house on Thanksgiving-I have never understood the 2pm Thanksgiving.  I don’t eat lunch at 2pm and I don’t eat dinner at 2pm so why would I eat Thanksgiving at 2pm?  In my house we watch football, hang out and have dinner at 7pm and the crash into dreamland with full bellies.
Anyway, I digress…. before we sit down to dinner, I make crab cakes topped with caviar and serve a glass of champagne to toast to the holiday season. Even the kids get a glass of kid champagne.  It is something that we all look forward to all year.  But, my son Jack LOVES crab and begs me to make crab cakes all the time.  I did not want to take away from the tradition that we look forward to so I came up with an alternative way to serve crab cakes.  Here is my “rest of the year” crab cakes recipe.
Print

Crabcakes with Spicy Avocado Sauce

These crab cakes have no filler so they are just crab! So crunchy and delicious. We serve these with a dollop of sour cream and caviar for Thanksgiving. A family favorite!! For week night crab cakes I serve with a spicy avocado cream sauce-amazing!!

Ingredients

Crab Cakes

  • 1 16oz Container Lump crab meat
  • 1 teaspoon Fresh lemon juice-half a lemon
  • 5 Tablespoons Grapeseed oil (it has a higher smoke point than olive oil)
  • 1 small Onion, finely chopped
  • 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
  • 1/3 Cup Mayonnaise
  • 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 3/4 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Dried thyme
  • 2 Tablespoons Fresh parsley,chopped
  • 3 Large eggs
  • 3 Cups Cornflakes

Avocado Sauce

  • 1/2 Avocado, peeled
  • 1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 2 Tablespoons Fresh lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Jalapeno,chopped, seeds and stems removed, unless you like it really spicy

Instructions

How to Make Crab Cakes

  1. Pick over crab meat and remove any pieces of shell or cartilage.  Sprinkle with lemon juice and set aside.

  2. In a non stick 12" skillet, heat 1 Tablespoon of grapeseed oil (olive oil or vegetable will work just fine) over medium heat.  Add onion and cayenne pepper.  Saute the onions until they are translucent, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.

  3. In a zip top bag, crush cornflakes until all the flakes are broken up and crumbs are formed.  Add 1 Tablespoon parsley.  Pour mixture into a pie plate. In another pie plate, beat 2 eggs with 1 Tablespoon water.

  4. In a medium bowl, with a whisk or fork, blend mayonnaise, mustard, salt, thyme, 1 Tablespoon parsley and 1 egg.  Stir in crabmeat and onion mixture.  Mix well until blended.  

  5. With your hands, shape crabmeat into twenty-four, 2" round cakes. Since these crab cakes do not have any bread to bind them I find it easiest  to form a cake and immediately dip it into the egg mixture and then into the cornflake mixture and place on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Continue with remaining crab mixture.  *Just keep forming these while you are dipping. They do tend to break apart due to lack of bread binder.

  6. *If you have time make the cakes ahead of time and place them in the fridge to tighen up-up to 12 hours. Then fry them when you are ready to eat.

  7. In the same skillet you sauted the onions in, add the remaining grapeseed oil and heat over medium high.  Add 3-4 crab cakes and cook about 7-8 minutes, turning once until golden brown on both sides.  Be sure not to crowd the pan. Transfer the cakes to a platter and cover loosely with foil or place in a 200° oven until ready to serve.  Drizzle Avocado sauce on each cake.

To Make Avocado Sauce:

  1. In a blender or mini prep, blend avocado, mayonnaise, lime juice, salt, 1/2 the jalapeno.  Add the milk and blend until smooth. Add more jalapeno if you want it spicier.  Taste for salt and add more milk if you want the sauce to be thinner. Transfer sauce to bowl and chill in fridge until ready to use. *This sauce goes great with eggs, grilled chicken or even a quick salad dressing.

Needed Items