Thursday, February 07, 2013

crab cake scotch quail eggs


I am not really sure how this happened. At some point I pieced this ball idea together in my head and had a perfectly logical rationalization for it. The reasoning has completely left me, but I was still convinced that crab scotch eggs needed to happen. 
Happily, these were quite good! The flaky, briny crab meat and the rich (and adorable!) quail eggs made fast friends, accented with a light buttery crust and some lemon zing. These would be an impressive and fun appetizer at a spring dinner or cocktail party. 




Crab Cake Scotch Quail Eggs 
-12 quail eggs
-1 lb. crab meat
-1.5 cups saltine cracker crumbs, divided
-1 Tablespoon butter, melted
-1 cup mayonnaise, divided
-1 lemon
-1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
-1 Tablespoon spicy mustard
-1 teaspoon hot sauce
-2 teaspoon Old Bay
-1 egg
-1 handful of parsley, chopped
-salt and pepper
-1 clove garlic, minced
-lemon wedges and parsley for serving 
Put the quail eggs in a sauce pan and cover with cold water by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil then remove pan from heat and let sit for 4 minutes. Drain the hot water and add cold water and let the eggs cool about 10 minutes. Peel the eggs, very carefully, then rinse them and dab dry. 
Make the dipping sauce: Combine 1/2 cup of mayo with the zest and juice of half a lemon, half of the parsley and the minced garlic. set aside. 
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. 
Mix the crab meat with half of the cracker crumbs (3/4 cup), 1/2 cup of mayo, juice of half a lemon, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, hots sauce, old bay, egg and salt and pepper. Let mixture sit about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, make the breading by combining the rest of the cracker crumbs with the melted butter in a separate bowl. Grab about 2 Tablespoons worth of the mixture and form into a thin patty. Place a peeled quail egg in the center and gently wrap the crab mixture around it to form a ball, squeezing gently so any excess liquid drips out. Once all the eggs are enrobed in crabby goodness, gently roll the balls in the cracker/butter mixture and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for about 25 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm with the dipping sauce, parsley and lemon wedges.

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