Crabby Summer Delights

After last summer's oil spill Gulf seafood has been back on the market and better than ever. My first foray into using coconut flour came when I picked up an amazing container of lump crab at the farmers market a few weeks back, I was confronted with a big pile of really fresh sweet crab..everything that came to mind involved things I shouldn't be eating so I was stumped. No crab-mango salad (mango is on the 'unfavorable carb list for now), no crab gratin (cheese isn't on the list either), crab cakes would be fabulous but the breading...how to solve the breading problem? Then, while wandering around the internet I found the solution...coconut flour!

First up, Paleo Crab Cakes...

1 LB Crab Meat
2 Tbsp Finely Diced Shallot
2 Tbsp Mayonnaise
Zest of 1 Lemon
1 Tsp Minced Garlic
Creole Seasoning, to taste
1/8 Tsp of Ancho Chile Powder
1/4 Cup Egg White
2 Tbsp Coconut Flour
2-4 Tbsp Coconut Oil

1. Mix the crab with the shallot, mayo, garlic, sea salt, pepper, chipotle, egg, lemon zest and coconut flour.
2. In a large skillet, heat the coconut oil over medium heat for 1 minute or until hot enough that a sprinkle of water in the pan makes the oil sizzle.
3. Form the crab cake mixture into palm size patties and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown. Makes approximately 10 crab cakes.

I served these atop a salad that was lightly dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. If you follow a zone diet, these crab cakes are 1.5 blocks of protein and 0.25 blocks of fat each.



Since turning my crab into cakes I've used canned salmon (not idea but it was on hand) to the same effect, turning my salmon cakes into a Thai inspired tasty lunch treat!

Thai Salmon Patties
1 Tsp Red Curry Paste
6oz Can Salmon, drained
2 Tbsp Coconut Flour
1 Tsp Minced Garlic
1 Diced Shallot
1/4 Cup Egg White
2-4 Tbsp Coconut Oil

1. Mix the salmon, curry paste, garlic, shallot, egg white and coconut flour.
2. In a large skillet, heat the coconut oil over medium heat for 1 minute or until hot enough that a sprinkle of water in the pan makes the oil sizzle.
3. Form the mixture into palm size patties and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown. Makes approximately 3 medium sized salmon patties or 2 large sized patties.

I served these atop a salad that was lightly dressed with a mixture of sesame oil and rice wine viengar. If you follow a zone diet, these salmon patties are 3 blocks of protein and 1 block of fat each.



Side note, I know that these both look the same, the salmon vs. the crab, if you used fresh salmon and cubed it up or flaked a freshly cooked piece of salmon vs. canned you would see a more 'pink' patty. I was pretty excited about the possibilities here and plan to try a mixture of raw tuna with the coconut flour, etc, raw salmon or even diced shrimp to create tasty burgers patties too. Needless to say these don't taste like 'health' food to me!