2505. CRAB CAKE BENEDICT with BACON HOLLANDAISE

serves four


12 oz. crabmeat, picked over to remove any stray shell pieces
1/4 cup mayonnaise
30 Ritz crackers, crushed
1/2 onion, small, finely diced
1/2 stalk celery, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
salt
pepper

3 slices bacon, thick cut, diced
8 tablespoons butter, clarified
2 each egg yolks
2 tablespoons white wine
pinch cayenne pepper
lemon juice, freshly squeezed

8 each eggs
vegetable oil

In a medium bowl, combine the crabmeat with the mayonnaise, crackers, onion, celery and seasonings. Mix well and allow to chill for 1/2 hour.

To make start making the Hollandaise sauce render the bacon until brown and crispy. Remove from heat and drain off the bacon fat, combining it with the clarified butter. In a medium sized pot bring about 1″ of water to a simmer. Place the yolks in medium sized mixing bowl along with the wine. Place the bowl over the simmering water and cook the eggs, whisking constantly, until the eggs are thick enough to hold a line drawn through them. This is known as the ribbon stage. Remove from the heat and very slowly, a bit at a time, drizzle in the butter-bacon grease mixture, whisking constantly so that the fat is emulsified into the egg yolks. Add the cayenne and squeeze of lemon juice and taste for salt, adding a bit, if necessary. Place in a warm, but not too hot spot as you finish the dish.

Divided the crab mixture into 8 equal patties. Heat some vegetable oil in a large skillet, over medium high heat and cook the crabcakes, in 2-3 batches depending on the size of your skillet, about 3 minutes per side. Meanwhile poach your eggs, again in batches if necessary.

As everything finishes up stir the crispy bacon into the Hollandaise sauce. Place two crabcakes on each of 4 plates. Top each with a poached egg and spoon some of the Bacon Hollandaise over top.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Peter Martin, Once a Chef Always a Chef: From Humble Eats to Haute Cuisine; A Life Spent Cooking, February 11, 2012