Golden Crisp Crab Cakes

The secret to these extra-crispy cakes is cooking them in a combination of oil and clarified butter (which has a higher smoke point) to golden-crisp without burning.

Recipe Ingredients:

1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon chopped celery
1 tablespoon chopped green pepper
1 tablespoon chopped onion
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon seafood seasoning
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 pound fresh lump or jumbo crabmeat, picked over
2 cups soft white bread crumbs - divided use
1/4 cup butter (no substitutions)
4 tablespoons vegetable oil - divided use
Lemon wedges

Cooking Directions:

1. Combine mayonnaise, egg, celery, green pepper, onion, parsley, lemon juice, mustard, seafood seasoning, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce in a bowl. Fold in crabmeat and 1 cup bread crumbs, just until blended.
2. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. Place remaining 1 cup bread crumbs on a large plate. Set aside.
3. Gently shape a rounded 1/3 cup crab mixture into a 2 1/4-inch patty; coat lightly with bread crumbs. Transfer crab cakes to prepared baking sheet. Repeat process with remaining crab mixture and crumbs. Refrigerate 4 hours.
4. Meanwhile, make clarified butter. Microwave butter on HIGH (100%) in 1-cup glass measure covered with plastic wrap 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, until melted. Let stand 2 minutes until milk solids settle to bottom. Skim off foaming top; discard. Pour clear liquid into cup.
5. Preheat oven to 250°F (120°C).
6. Heat 1 tablespoon clarified butter and 2 tablespoons oil in skillet over medium heat. When hot, add 4 crab cakes and cook until golden, about 4 minutes. Turn cakes and cook 4 minutes more. Transfer cakes to baking sheet; keep warm in oven. Wipe out skillet and cook remaining cakes with remaining butter and oil. Serve with lemon.

Makes 8 crab cakes.