Crab Cakes with Lemon & Avacado

As I write this post, I am sitting on vacation in the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I absolutely love traveling (its part of my full time job and my favorite hobby) and part of that is definitely partaking in the local cuisine. This trip has been amazing for cooking since we have a full house with a kitchen (not to mention a pool and a hot tub). The local crab is supposed to be amazing and we live very close to the local seafood store. Tonight we made healthy crab cakes, and my husband's exact statement was "these could be served in a restaurant"!

In making crab cakes I believe the crab should be the star of the cake so I avoid a lot of fillers.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 crab cakes)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
• 2 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise (substitution - miracle whip)
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind (instead of measuring I just grated the outside of 1/2 a lemon)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (juice 1/2 of a lemon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large egg (substitution - 2 egg whites)
• 1/3 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1 pound lump crab meat, drained and shell pieces removed (I used jumbo lump crab meat)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
• 1 Avocado (ripe)
• 1 lemon (cut in quarters)

Directions

1. Combine first 8 ingredients, whisk lightly with a fork. Add bread crumbs and crab, tossing gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.
2. Fill a 1/3-cup dry measuring cup with crab mixture. Invert onto work surface; gently pat into a 3/4-inch-thick patty. Repeat procedure with remaining crab mixture, forming 8 cakes.
3. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil (substitution - instead of oil use cooking spray in a nonstick skillet) in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 4 crab cakes to pan; cook 4 minutes or until bottoms are golden. Carefully turn cakes; cook 4 minutes or until bottoms are golden and crab cakes are thoroughly heated. Remove cakes from pan; keep warm. Wipe pan dry with paper towels. Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil (substitution cooking spray) in pan. Repeat procedure with remaining 4 crab cakes.
4. Chop avocado in chunks
5. Serve 2 crab cakes with a heaping spoonful of avocado and 1/4 of a lemon

These are really healthy crab cakes and in my opinion better than a restaurant (especially since you know what you are putting into your body).

Superfoods - citrus, lean protein