Zucchini "Crab" Cakes

If you’ve ever been to Maryland, you know eating crabs is a summer pastime: picnic tables covered with brown paper, silver buckets, buttered corn, french fries, cornbread, and the unmistakable scent of seafood.
In Maryland crab meat goes on everything: hamburgers, stuffed shrimps, stuffed mushrooms, soup, literally everything gets crab meat. But my absolute favorite thing made with crab meat are crab cakes.
When done right, crab cakes are just fabulous: the perfect blend of lump crabmeat, hardly any filler, and an amazing blend of seasoning. DELISH!

I’m not here to talk about crab cakes though; sure I can make some MEAN crab cakes but today it’s all about these Zucchini “Crab” Cakes.
Would you believe me if I told you that these really taste like crab cakes, even if made with no crab at all? And they are good enough to fool crabcake-lovers?
Probably not. You should though.

I once served ‘em to Dad and even though he’s crab lover, he raved over these.
Even though he labeled them as “poorman’s crab cakes” he enjoyed them so very much.
I know it sounds doubtful, but the combination of traditional seasonings and the texture of zucchini really do create a resulting dish that tastes a lot like crab cakes.
They might not look like crab cakes, but the taste is there.

These Zucchini “Crab” Cakes not only are a cheap alternative that uses shredded zucchini in place of crab meat, they’re also a nice vegetarian option, not to mention a great way to utilize that bumper crop of zucchini.
They’re great alone smeared with tartar sauce or in a bun with lettuce and tomato.
Crispy and golden brown on the outside, and moist on the inside. Perfect in my book!

Zucchini “Crab” Cakes                                                                                                                           Print this recipe!

Ingredients
Makes 6 cakes

2 ½ cups grated zucchini (about 2 medium zucchini)
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons mayonnaise (make your own paleo mayo with this recipe)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 ½ teaspoons mustard (preferably Dijon mustard)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning (make your own Old Bay Seasoning with this recipe)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup breadcrumbs (I used Aleia's Gluten Free Panko Crumbs)

Directions

In a large bowl combine grated zucchini, egg, mayonnaise, parsley, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, seasoning, and salt.
Add breadcrumbs ¼ cup at a time and mix until it reaches a firm consistency and will hold up as cakes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to firm up.
Scoop about ¼ cup of mixture and with dampened hands shape into 6 cakes.
Preheat a large nonstick pan to medium-high and coat with vegetable oil. When hot, place cakes in pan and cook until golden-brown, about 4 to 5 minutes per side.
Alternatively you can bake the cakes in the oven. Place cakes on a greased baking sheet. Preheat broiler and broil for 6 minutes, remove from the oven, carefully flip the cakes, and broil on the other side for further 6 minutes, until golden-brown.
Serve immediately with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Nutrition facts

One cake yields 124 calories, 5 grams of fat, 15 grams of carbs, and 5 grams of protein.