It happened that when I was 10 years-old I got drunk. I didn’t mean to get drunk. To be honest, I didn’t know what ‘drunk’ was and it’s not like I set out to get drunk either. It’s just that when a byproduct of your culture/religion is a beverage that can only be described as the simple child of the marriage between grape juice and cheap red wine, children will get drunk. They just will.
Manischewitz was the game and I was the player. The adults around our Passover Seder table were smart enough not to finish their required 4 cups of Manischewitz (it’s not even known as ‘wine’; that’s how sugary sweet and cheap Manischewitz is). And so, when no one was looking I finished everybody’s cups. I mean EVERYBODY’S.
I don’t have to tell you what several glasses of Manischewitz can do to a 10 year-old. Needless to say, there were stomach aches and there may have been a fetal position here or there but I did survive. I also didn’t learn my lesson. Fast forward 9 years and there were definitely a few bottles of Manischewitz passed around a gathering of the only Jewish kids at my small Ohio liberal arts college in the name of celebrating Passover. Because hey, nothing says ‘freedom’ like celebrating Passover in college.
And now I’m nearly 34 and we’ve moved way beyond Manischewitz. Heck, we’ve moved way beyond matzah. Passover in our house still smells of the usual potato kugel and roast chicken. But thanks to the glory of almond meal and quinoa and my own confidence in the kitchen, Passover food in our house is healthy, delicious and void of the overly sugary and overly processed.
The recipe in this post was inspired by my intense craving for a former favorite meal of mine back in my treif (non-kosher) days. When I was living in Athens, GA and working at the Hillel at the University of Georgia, I would indulge my ultimate Southern food cravings with occasional crab cake. I’m not saying I’m proud of it, but I am saying I loooooooved it. And now that we’re a kosher home, I wanted to find a way to indulge my Southern cravings with my kosher kitchen. It was easy to make this recipe Kosher for Passover with the addition of some fresh and raw zucchini. If you don’t have a Julienne peeler, you can cut them up into small slices or even shred them in a food processor. However, if you want a Julienne peeler, they’re super cheap and you can get them on Amazon.
Ingredients
- 7 Sticks of imitation krab meat, coarsely chopped
- 1 Small red pepper, diced small
- 4 Green onions, diced small
- 1 Jalapeno, diced small
- Juice of 1/2 a lime
- 1/2 Cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 Cup matzah meal
- 1 Bunch cilantro, diced small
- 1 Tbsp cumin
- 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
- 1/2 Tbsp pepper
- 5 Tbsp cooking oil
- 1 large zucchini, sliced into noodles with a julienne peeler
- {For Avocado Crema} 1/2 Cup sour cream
- 1/2 Cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 Avocado
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, 1/2 cup of the mayonnaise, 1/2 of an avocado and 1 Tbsp of lime juice. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the Krab meat, the remaining 1/4 cup mayonnaise, matzah meal, red pepper, green onions, jalapeno, cilantro, cumin, salt, and pepper. Mix well.
- Shape the crab mixture into eight small patties (about the size of your palm). Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- In a large nonstick frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Working in batches if necessary, fry the cakes until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes. Turn and fry until golden brown on the other side, about 2 minutes longer. Drain on paper towels.
- Serve immediately on top of zucchini noodles with avocado crema and top with a bit more cilantro.
