They wanna be Crab Cakes when they grow up!

Chick pea fritters

I used to make veggie crab cakes with a product that I was no longer able to find.  I later found out that the product was discontinued which is just as well since I had a desire to shift the way that I eat anyway.  I wanted to eat more natural products instead of processed products.  So I was determined to recreate this tasty treat in a more natural way.  Then a friend asked me and those of you that know me well know that I will do most anything for my friends.  So now it's on, to the lab I go with focus and determination, and Love of course, there's always love though.  There may also be a touch of arrogance, I had really become known for my veggie crab cakes! 

This recipe is part one in the creation process.  Sometimes what I do is use what I have readily available and with the end goal in mind I  riff on the concept and see what occurs.  This is a creative process that I Love!  The result is this tasty treat that I am now injoying, so I decided to share this part of the process so that you could injoy it too.  I will let you know how the rest comes along.  In the meantime if you have any suggestions leave me a comment.  Remember this is a recipe in progress. 

1 15 oz can of chick peas, drained and rinsed

1 clove fresh garlic

1 green onion finely chopped

1 T fresh red hot pepper, finely chopped

3 T olive oil

2 slices smoked gouda cheese, finely chopped

½ cup chopped walnuts

panko bread crumbs

salt and pepper to taste

grapeseed oil for sauteing

Please feel free to shift and simplify this recipe. The items that you add are more for flavor than anything else. If you remove the cheese you will need to add something else that may assist with flavor and texture and binding. This is a basic method that you can shift according to what you have available. This is what I had available and how I used it.

Place all of the ingredients except the olive food processor and pulse just to break them up. You can also use a blender (which I did), or a stick blender. Once they are crumbly, remove ¾ of the mixture and add to a bowl. Take the rest of the ¼ of the mixture and blend with the olive and salt and pepper and when it resembles chunky peanut butter, mix it with the rest of the mixture. Season your panko with lots of pepper and a little salt. Divide the mixture into 4 large patties and roll in the seasoned panko and place in the refrig to chill for 10 mins. Meanwhile straighten your space and heat a 12” skillet and add enough grapeseed oil to just cover the bottom of the skillet and saute the patties for about 3 mins on each side or until they are golden. Injoy.