Friday, September 5, 2014

Vegan MoFo VIII, Day 4: Crab Cakes




Today's recipe comes from a book I started writing right after I self published Cozy Inside, called Just the Burgers, you know, because this blog is called Just the Food...  The book was pretty much done...the testers had given me their names and pictures, and I was almost ready to self publish again. 

Hey testers...I finally got to post your pictures!

It was then that I got the call to begin work on 500 Vegan Recipes, and soon after, The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions, with Celine, so the burger book got put on the back burner. As written, the book was never published.  However, I was able to submit the idea to Fairwinds Press, and they decided they would like to publish it under the new name of The Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet: 101 Globally Inspired Vegan Creations Packed with Fresh Flavors and Exciting New Tastes which is quite a mouthful...But I thought it was cute, and we moved forward.

Original cover on the left with photo by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. Actual Cover on the right with photo by Celine Steen

There are a ton of recipes from this book already featured here on the blog (just use the search function in the upper left corner and type in "burger" and they will all come up) so I wanted to share a new one for MoFo.  Crab Cakes.  Made with hijiki and tofu.  I love these little fellas, especially when they are fried up nice and crispy and served with aioli for dipping.

Crab Cakes from The Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet (page 97)
Crab Cakes
These are the prettiest patties! I make 'em small, and I fry them in a lot of oil.  I like how the carrots kind of imitate the look of crab meat.

Serving Suggestion
I don't serve these on a bun, although I'm sure they's taste good that way. I just like to serve these on a bed of greens with Aioli Dipping Sauce

Ingredients (makes 15 small patties)
1/4 cup hijiki seaweed
2 cups hot water*
1 can (15 ounces)chickpeas
1 block (12 ounces)extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup gluten flour
Salt & Pepper to taste
Optional: Panko Breadcrumbs and soy or coconut milk (see directions below)

Place the hijiki in the hot water and let set for 10 minutes to reconstitute. While it's soaking, in a mixing bowl, crumble your tofu, and add all other ingredients. Mix together with your hands making sure that you mash some of the beans while leaving some of them intact. Make sure, also, that your flour gets well mixed in and that there are no lumps of flour hiding out in the mix. Strain the hijiki, reserving the liquid. Add the hijiki to the mixture and mix well. If you need more moisture in your mix add in a little of the reserved hijiki water* until you get the right consistency. I needed about 1/2 cup. Refrigerate at least 20 minutes before forming into little crab cake sized patties. Then refrigerate the patties at least 2 to 3 hours before cooking so that the flavor of the hijiki gets well incorporated. Overnight is even better. Pan fry in oil until golden and crispy. Serve with Aioli Dipping sauce, below. Enjoy.

Optional: Before frying, coat each patty with Japanese style Panko breadcrumbs, by first dipping the patty in soy or coconut milk, and then into the breadcrumbs

Yield: 15 crab cakes











1 comment:

n_selah_d said...

Yum! I'm going to have to give this a go they sound amazing!!

2012 Copyright/Permissions/Disclaimers

All recipes written by me, Joni Marie Newman, unless otherwise noted. Please feel free to refer to or link back to any of my recipes, but please ask for permission, and remember to give credit when reprinting recipes in their entirety. I do provide links to affiliate programs (such as Amazon) in which I receive a small commission for items purchased. I do not provide paid reviews. All reviews done on products or books are of my own unsolicited opinion. On occasion I may receive a book or product to review. I will note when this is the case, but rest assured, it will not affect the authenticity of my review. Thanks!--Joni