Crab Rangoon

CRAB RANGOON
If you enjoy Chinese food and you've ordered crab rangoon very many times you know it can vary significantly in texture and content.  By that I mean it is sometimes overdone to the point of "why bother" or it often is so light on the crab that you might as well call it just --rangoon. You can avoid these problems by making this tasty dish yourself.  It if fairly easy and you can make them delicately moist and filled with lots of crab meat.  This recipe is also large on flavor thanks to the garlic, ginger, and soy sauce.  A nice light meal would be just these and a bowl of soup!  Olivia made these because she is a big fan of crab rangoon.  Try making your own and you may never be satisfied with restaurant ones again!
-Nanette

CRAB RANGOON

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, at room temp
• 3/4-1 cup crabmeat, picked
• 2 green onions, sliced thin
• 1 clove garlic, minced 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• wonton wrappers (You should only need one package)
• oil ( for frying)

Directions

1. Whip together the sour cream, cream cheese and soy sauce and sugar until smooth.
2. Fold in remaining ingredients (except wrappers) Heat oil to med-high and you want it around 1 1/2-2 inches deep.
3. Place a small bowl of water on your work surface and lay out 6 wrappers, and place around 1 1 1/2 t's in the center of each wrapper.
4. Moisten edges with water, bring up corners and pinch together, along with sides-you dont want filling to float away.
5. Place all 6 in the hot oil and repeat process.
6. By the time you have the next set of 6 ready to crimp it should be time to turn the rangoons.
7. You want them a nice golden color.
8. When done remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
9. Repeat until finished.

CRAB CAKE SLIDERS

CRAB CAKE SLIDERS
Olivia is not a big seafood fan, but her husband is and he reports these crab cake sliders are fantastic.  The original recipe was for mini crab cakes, but Olivia made them slightly larger and put them on ciabatta buns.  I have not made these but I am a huge fan of crab cakes and if my son-in-law likes them I know they must be good!  If you are looking for something a little different to serve as your holiday fare for the upcoming Fourth of July weekend, give these a try.  They would be super with fresh fruit, grilled vegetables, a nice slaw, or just about anything you can think of to accompany them.  Enjoy!
-Nanette

Crab Cake Sliders with Spicy Mayo

Ingredients:

Crab Cakes:

1 pound crabmeat

1/2 red bell pepper, small diced

5 scallions, finely sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 lemon, juiced

1/2 cup finely crushed crackers or panko breadcrumbs

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 large egg

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon dry ground mustard

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon salt

Dash cayenne pepper

For Cooking & Serving:

Olive oil

15 slider buns or halved dinner rolls

1/2 cup spinach, arugula or sprouts for topping

Spicy Mayo:

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice (from about 1/4 lemon)

1 1/2 Tbsp. chili sauce, such as Sriracha

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Prepare a large baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine all crab cake ingredients. Mix ingredients with your hands. Shape into small patties and place on the baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook. (Can be made 1 day ahead)

Meanwhile, make your spicy mayo. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir to blend. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. (Can be made 1 day ahead)

When ready to cook crab cakes, drizzle about 1 1/2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, carefully place crab cakes, in batches, in pan and fry until browned, 4-5 minutes per side. Carefully flip crab cakes and fry on other side until golden brown, another 4 minutes.

Place sliders onto buns. Top with mayo and greens, and serve.