Lion’s Mane “Crab” Cakes

On my most recent visit to the Santa Fe Farmer’s Market, I couldn’t resist walking away with a glorious, huge Lion’s Mane mushroom. If you have ever seen these beauties and wondered “what the heck do I do with these?”, this is the recipe for you. Surprisingly, the texture of these mushrooms strongly resembles crab meat, which means that they are the perfect vegetarian substitute for crab cakes. Serving this on a bed of fresh greens tossed in a citrus vinaigrette makes for a perfect appetizer or light lunch. While at the farmer’s market, be sure to pick up a jar of green chile jam for the sauce. Trust me when I say this sauce makes the dish! The cooking technique I use employs a stainless steel skillet and parchment paper. This will let the crab cake be thoroughly cooked inside while giving it a nicely browned crust AND be sure that it doesn’t stick to the pan.

Makes 3 large crab cakes

Ingredients

Crab cakes

• ½ pound lion’s mane mushroom
• 2 tbsp finely diced green onions
• 2 tbsp diced parsley
• ¼ to 1/3 cup breadcrumbs (see notes)
• ¼ mayonnaise (I like Kewpie mayonnaise)
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper (can omit if you don’t like the heat)
• 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
• ½ tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg
• Parchment paper
• Olive oil

Directions

1. Rinse the mushroom and trim off any dirty parts.
2. Using your fingers, pick apart the mushroom into pieces that look like crab meat chunks.
3. Place mushrooms into a skillet with 2-3 tbsp of water on the bottom (enough to keep the mushrooms from sticking). Sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt and turn heat to medium.
4. Simmer mushrooms until wilted. If needed, add a bit more water to keep the mushrooms from sticking. Cook off most of the water, then transfer to a cheesecloth-lined colander to cool.
5. As soon as the mushrooms are cool enough to handle, wrap the cheesecloth around them and squeeze to get out as much moisture as possible (see notes).
6. Mix together the green onions, parsley, breadcrumbs, cayenne, and Old Bay until thoroughly combined.
7. Add mushroom, mayo, and Worcestershire sauce, stir to thoroughly combine.
8. Give the mixture a “test squeeze”. It should be able to form into a cohesive cake without being too soft or too crumbly. If it is too soft, add a tbsp or two more breadcrumbs. If it is too dry, add a tbsp or two more mayo.
9. Taste the mix at this point and add salt and pepper to taste.
10. Whisk egg separately, then add to the final mix. Again, check for consistency and add mayo/breadcrumbs if too dry/wet, respectively.
11. Form the mixture into three large cakes, about 4 inches in diameter and 1 inch thick. Press firmly to be sure the mix is tightly packed (can use a ring mold here if you wish, but I just use my hands).
12. Cut a piece of parchment paper to form a circle that fits into your skillet base
13. Add about a tablespoon of oil to the base of the skillet, then lay the parchment paper on top. Slide the paper around to have the oil form a very thin layer between the paper and the skillet.
14. Turn the heat to medium and add another tablespoon or two of olive oil on top of the parchment paper.
15. Place one cake in the center of the paper, then cover skillet for 4 minutes.
16. Check to see if the base of the cake is well browned. If it is, then flip cake. If not, cook for another minute.
17. Cook cake on the flipped side for 3 minutes or so. Check center of cake with thermometer—the center should read at least 160 F.
18. Remove cake from pan and place in oven set to warm until the rest of the cakes are cooked.
19. Serve on greens tossed with your favorite vinaigrette.

Green Chili jam sauce

• ¼ cup mayonnaise (I like Kewpie mayonnaise)
• ¼ cup green chili jam

Whisk together equal parts mayonnaise and green chili jam. Serve crab cake with a dollop on top (can also serve on the side in a cup for dipping).

Notes:

1. You can use storebought breadcrumbs for this (like Panko breadcrumbs). I prefer using the heels of a sourdough loaf that have been thoroughly dried out and tossed into a blender to pulverize into breadcrumbs. If you are in a rush to dry the bread for breadcrumbs, put into microwave and heat at high in 20 second intervals until hard (keep an eye on this though, because the bread absolutely can burn!).
2. Getting as much moisture out of the mushrooms is critical for the success of this recipe. Do give them time to cool off after cooking so you can thoroughly squeeze them without burning yourself.
3. If you happen to have this spice, I recommend this in lieu of Old Bay: Espelette pepper (piment d’Espelette). It is a pepper from the Basque region of France with a mild heat and a smoky, fruity flavor. Use it in equal proportions to Old Bay in this recipe (or to taste).