Crab Cakes with Creole Mustard Sauce

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup flour

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon Creole seasoning

1 pound crab meat (lump or backfin)

1/4 cup celery (finely chopped)

2 tablespoons green pepper (finely chopped)

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely crushed

2 tablespoons green onion, finely chopped

1 teaspoon garlic, finely chopped

3 eggs

3 cups soft-fresh French bread crumbs, pulverized in blender

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

6 tablespoons butter

Creole Sauce for Crab Cakes:

3 egg yolks

1-1/2 cups olive oil

1 tablespoon creole mustard

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 cup green, onions, finely chopped

1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped

1/2 cup dill pickles, finely chopped

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

In a heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and mix well. Stirring constantly, pour in milk slowly and cook until mixture comes to a boil, very thick and smooth. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes. Stir in seasonings. Scrape into mixing bowl. Add crab meat (picked over for shells). Add celery, green pepper, parsley, green onion and garlic mixing gently but thoroughly. Taste for seasoning adjustments. Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until mixture is firm. Beat eggs in shallow bowl. Spread crumbs on waxed paper. Divide crab mixture into 6 or 8 mounds equally and pat into cakes about 1/2 inch thick. Place each in bread crumbs and carefully coat each side. Dip in beaten egg coating both sides and turn in crumbs again to coat evenly. Place cake on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet and return to refrigerator for at least an hour to firm coating. Using a heavy 12-inch skillet, melt 6 tablespoons butter with the oil over medium heat. Add crab cakes and fry them about 5 minutes on each side or until delicately brown on each side. Turn only once. Serve with Creole sauce.

Creole Sauce:
Beat egg yolk, with electric mixer on high speed for 2 minutes until they thicken. Beat in 1/2 cup of oil, 1/2 teaspoon at a time. Make sure each addition is absorbed before adding more. After 1/2 cup of oil is added, the sauce should have the consistency of thick cream. Pour remaining oil in a slow thin stream, heating constantly. Add Creole mustard, seasonings and continue to beat until sauce is smooth. Stir in green onions, parsley and pickles and taste to adjust seasoning. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve with crab cakes.

Serves 4-6

*Editor's note:
The Unite States Department of Agriculture advises against the consumption of raw, eggs because of the possibility of the presence of salmonella contamination in uncooked poultry products. One cup of commercially pre pared mayonnaise may be substituted for the oil and raw egg mixture.

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Cajun Country -- New Iberia, Louisiana