Our favorite crab cake recipe also makes a really great crab stuffing. While everyone does the standard crab stuffed mushrooms or crab stuffed shrimp, we are going a little more unique with a crab stuffed eggplant. Paired with a rustic roasted tomato sauce and finished with a unique, sweet and sour, agro dolce of golden raisins and toasted slivered almonds.
- Prep Time: 15m
- Cook Time: 1h
- Total Time: 1h 15m
- Serves: 6
- Category: Brunch, Dinner, Entree, Fall, Jack's Catch And Pacific Cove, Vegetables
Ingredients
- For the Crab Cake
- 1 pound Crab Meat
- 1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
- 2 TBS Mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons Seafood Seasoning, such as Old Bay brand
- 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2/3 cup Breadcrumb or crushed crackers
- For the Roasted Tomato Sauce
- 2 pounds Plum tomatoes, cored and cut in half lengthwise
- 2 TBS EVOO
- 2 Large Cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Oregano, dried
- ½ tsp Pepper
- 1 Shallot, small dice
- For the Eggplant
- 2 TBS EVOO
- 3 Large Eggplants (about 1lb each), cut in half lengthwise
- For the Almond and Golden Raisin Agro Dolce
- ¼ Cup Golden Raisins, roughly chopped
- ¼ Cup Almonds, blanched & slivered
- 2 TBS EVOO
- 2 TBS Sherry Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 TBS Sugar
- 3 Scallions, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400⁰. Brush the cut sides of the eggplants and the tomatoes with EVOO and season lightly with salt and the oregano. Place cut side down on baking sheets and roast in the preheated oven until they are about 20-30 minutes depending on the size. While the vegetables are roasting prepare the crab cake mix. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients except the crab and the breadcrumbs and mix to combine. Add the crab in an even layer on top of the mix and cover evenly with the breadcrumbs. Gently fold until just combined using a rubber spatula, being careful not to break up the pieces of crab meat. All the eggplant to cool and scrape out about ½ of the insides. Fill the cavities of the eggplants with equal amounts of the crab cake mix, pressing gently to adhere and place on a baking sheet. Reduce the oven to 350⁰ and bake the eggplants for an additional 20 -25 minutes until heated through. Remove the skins from the tomatoes and transfer to a medium bowl (with all the oil and juices). Crush the tomatoes using a potato masher or a large fork, season to taste. In another bowl add the vinegar, salt and sugar and allow, mix to combine and add the raisins, allow to soak for about 10 minutes, until plumped. In a small sauté pan add the EVOO and heat over medium, add the almonds and lightly toast. Add the warm almonds and the oil the raisins, stir to combine, add the scallions and serve. To serve place some of the roasted tomato sauce on a plate, add the eggplant on top and drizzle some of the agro dolce on top.