A Light Lunch

It's been three months since I had my baby. He's healthy, beautiful and wonderfully cheery.


And while it took nine months to put on the weight during my pregnancy, I am quite eager to get to my pre-pregnancy shape.

It's time to take action.

But I love to eat and this is a food blog... so let's not go crazy here.

Maybe we should have lunch first....

Normally, I make a mini version of these crab cakes as an hor d'oeuvre for parties. And gosh, they are delicious. These are so simple to make, perfectly paired with a light salad for lunch.

I use lump crab meat as I love biting into the little nuggets of crab delicately held together by a savoury, moist filling brightened with a hint of citrus and dill.


Crab Cakes
(makes approximately 4 crab cakes)

1/4 lb crab meat, well drained (lump crab if you have it)
1 tsp finely minced dill
1 tsp finely minced parsley
1/2 tsp celery salt
pinch of smoked paprika (or regular paprika)
pinch of freshly ground pepper
1/2 c panko crumbs
1 egg lightly beaten
1 tsp lemon juice
(* 1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning - I normally add Old Bay to my crab cakes but it isn't available everywhere. If you have it, I'd reduce the celery salt to 1/4 tsp but add a pinch of salt to the mixture.)

1/2 c panko crumbs in a separate shallow bowl

1 tbsp butter

1. Gently fold dill, parsley, celery salt, paprika, pepper, panko crumbs, egg and lemon juice into drained crab. Don't overmix and try to keep crab in chunks.
2. Divide the mixture into quarters and gently shape into patties.
3. Gently coat crab cakes in panko bread crumbs. Set aside on a plate. Repeat. Cover crab cakes with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. Melt butter over medium heat in a large fry pan until butter is foamy.
5. Gently fry crab cakes until golden brown and toasty. (Flip crab cakes over only once.)
6. Serve immediately with a side salad.