I love ordering crab cakes out—they’re such a treat. But if I want to make crab cakes at home, they need to cater to our food restrictions. That means they have to be delicious AND have no eggs, dairy, wheat, gluten or grains. Well these knock it out of the park, thanks to some secret ingredients that give these crab cakes the texture and hold that they need to deliver.

Pleated Shade Table Lamp | Cabinet Knobs | Cabinet Pulls | Mirrored Wall Sconce | Pendant Light

Sheet Pan Set | Almond Flour Crackers | Duck Fat

One of the tricky things with making crab cakes for food restrictions is the idea of how to bind them together without eggs or breadcrumbs. So what I do is use Simple Mills Almond Flour Crackers and grind them in the food processor until they turn into crumbs. I use the whole bag so I have extra breadcrumbs on hand to top things that need just a little bit of crunch.

Then I use a white flesh sweet potato baked and cooled down as the binder for crab cakes. You don’t even notice it’s there, but it’s great to hold together patties like chicken nuggets, meatballs, meatloaf— just about anything. It’s a great trick to keep in your back pocket! (Plus it adds extra nutritional value.)

How to Make the Crab Cakes

For flavoring, I chop up some green onions and fresh thyme for the slightly peppery flavor and earthiness. Then it’s on to the crab! I’m using two types of crab meat: One is a crab cake blend, which includes jumbo lump, lump, and claw meat. The other is just of the claw meat.

I start with the claw meat container, adding that to a bowl with some of the sweet potato and seasoning. Throw on some gloves or just use your bare hands to mix the claw meat thoroughly since it’s already pretty shredded and fine. That way it evenly distributes throughout the rest of the crab cakes. Then you can mix in the rest of the crab meat gently along with some of the bread crumbs and mashed potato flakes until it is pretty well blended.

Put a non-stick pan over low heat and turn the oven on to 375 degrees convection setting. To sear the cakes, I use a combo of olive oil and duck fat to add just a little bit more flavor. Duck fat is lower in saturated fats and higher in “healthier” unsaturated fats than beef tallow or pork, and it has a great flavor. Just a nice option to have on hand when searing or pan-frying.

To get the crispy texture that makes crab cakes so tasty, I add some potato starch to a pan with some more seasoning and some bread crumbs.

Take about 1/3 cup of the crab mixture from the bowl and form into a cake shape about 1″ thick and 3” round. Press the crab cake down into the potato starch and crumbs on one side, press it down on the other, and add to the pan.

Once you see the browning happening on the bottom after a couple of minutes, flip the crab cake until you see color on the other side too. Next, we’ll add them to the oven to heat through for about 10 minutes. 

How to Make the Remoulade

Remoulade is a cooling tasty sauce made of mayonnaise, pickles, and herbs similar to a tartar sauce. It’s kind of like crab cakes’ best friend. Since the crab cakes already have some herbs and I don’t want to overwhelm their delicate, sweet flavor, I make a spin on remoulade with some vegan mayonnaise, freshly grated garlic, pickle juice, tabasco sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and a little salt and pepper. It comes together in just a couple of minutes, and it adds a little creaminess to counterbalance the crisp-crunch of the crab cakes.

To Serve

Sauté Pan | Dish Towel | Cutting Board | White Bowls

You can keep the crab cakes in the oven with it turned off to keep them warm until plating. I typically serve 1-2 crab cakes per person, drizzled with some remoulade sauce, sprinkled with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and topped with some microgreens for color. These crab cakes would be delicious served with roasted vegetables like asparagus or butternut squash with rosemary and sage. You can finish it off the meal with a light sorbet or fruit salad.

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They smell delicious: They have a subtle sweetness from the crab and sweet potato, and the nutty saltiness of the almond crackers balances them out perfectly. I hope you give these a try for a special dinner soon. Let me know what you think in the comments!

Dinner Plate | Dish Towel (similar)