In the Kitchen w/ Kelly: Crabless Cakes

I have never tried crab and can't say I plan on it. My only experience with faux crustacean was a veggie crab croquette special at the Royal Tavern a year ago. I recall that it was delicious. I assumed that Connie's Zucchini Crab Cakes wouldn't be anything like the real thing, and that I would not have a frame of reference to go by, anyway. Still, dash Old Bay on something fried and it pleases me.

After collecting zucchini, onion, lemon, and a loaf of crusty Sarcone's bread from Sue's Produce Market on 18th St., we set to work on the zucchini cakes. The recipe was a breeze, the bulk of the work in shredding the veg into mountains of zuke. They came together nicely, with the recipe for 5 servings yielding a dozen patties.



We placed the patties on a towel to soak up the extra oil. Crispy on each side, the green middles were lush and delicate. I whipped up a quick dijon tartar using lemon juice, dijon mustard, and Vegenaise to taste, which we spread on Sarcone's for a po'boy style meal.

When three sticks of zucchini becomes heaven
The zesty cakes were met with acceptance by a crab-card-carrying judge. "This isn't zucchini," he added, demanding to know exactly what I had added. The Old Bay bread crumbs had pulled tricks. So while the odds are slim that I'll ever try crab, it must be some kind of tasty.