Crab cakes, clam chowder and more easy seafood recipes

Also try Ed Brown’s sea scallops and roasted garlic potato puree

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>>> kitchen" gourmet seafood recipes made easy. chef ed brown is a collaborator at ed's shoud chowder house. so good to see you, ed. how's it going.

>> good to see you. happy holidays to you.

>> so we're making crab cakes today.

>> i want to start off by mentioning, do you know i've been cooking these on air here for almost 20 years? this same recipe. we're doing the fresh version.

>> thank goodness. i know at restaurant associates, they want the fresh stuff.

>> they do.

>> we're starting with mayonnaise. i actually use prepared. i use hellman's. it has a certain flavor, i really love it. old bay seasoning, cayenne pepper , dump it in. give me an egg yolk . okay.

>> a little mustard.

>> a little dijon mustard .

>> whisk it together.

>> what kind of crab?

>> this is blue crab . go ahead and mix that up a little bit.

>> but you don't want to bust it up too much?

>> we want to see those nice big lumps.

>> right. all right. then you've got an ice cream scoop.

>> we're not making a sundae. scoop it in there and then pack it in pretty good. and then right out into the crumbs.

>> what kind of bread crumbs or crumbs are these?

>> these are corn flake crumbs. all we do is gently put them on there. and then lightly pick it up so you hold it together. and just form it a little bit right onto your baking tray . a little tiny pat of butter on top.

>> you're baking these, not frying them?

>> bake them, not fry them. just bake it until they're hot because everything is cooked except for the egg yolks . these are fresh scallops.

>> i've never seen them before.

>> so scallops, you just open them like this and there's your little scallop. all of this is part of the abductor muscle that we're going to scrape away. when they come out of the shell, they look like this.

>> okay.

>> i've got my scallops cooking.

>> and this is a simple dish you can make?

>> that's the whole idea, we want to make this as easy as possible. butter, olive oil , sauteing my scallops. a little rosemary flavors the butter, which flavors the scallops.

>> and how long on each side?

>> about two minutes on each side. here's a little potato puree. i've got roasted garlic puree. the roasted garlic goes into a pan, olive oil , salt and pepper , some rosemary. i just squeeze that garlic out. look at this. bingo.

>> oh, yeah.

>> nice, fresh garlic.

>> you just roast that in the oven?

>> i roast that in the oven. when it comes out, i take the pieces, save some like that, puree the rest to make my puree. i'm going to put a little bit of this puree down on the plate.

>> okay. ladies, just in time.

>> yeah!

>> very good, savannah.

>> we've been working on that.

>> very nice. wow. you've been really using your muscle, even though those are scallops.

>> ed, it goes downhill from here.

>> it always does.

>> we've got chowder, we've got our loaded chowder from chowder house, we've got our biscuits, some bite-size crab cakes .

>> there we go.

>> and you're opening up a new restaurant.

>> with restaurant associates in philadelphia called wrrittenhouse tavern.

>> happy holidays .

>>> still to come, hoda and

Show transcript

TODAY recipes

updated 11/28/2011 5:26:40 PM ET

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Do you stress about making seafood during the holidays? Try Ed Brown’s easy to make appetizers!

Recipe: Chef Ed Brown's all crabmeat crab cakes (on this page) Recipe: Sea scallops and roasted garlic potato puree (on this page) Recipe: Ed's clam chowder (on this page)

Recipe: Chef Ed Brown's all crabmeat crab cakes

Ed Brown

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs
1 pound jumbo lump blue crabmeat with fat (best brand Clayton's)
1 1/2 teaspoon homemade mayonnaise or hellman
1 1/2 teaspoon old bay seasoning
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 each large egg yolk
2 teaspoons unsalted butter

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Carefully pick crabmeat for shells without smashing lumps. Distribute the cornflake crumbs on a platter. In nonreactive bowl combine mayo, old bay, mustard, yolk and pepper and mix well. Add crab toss gently until well blended. Form 6 crab cakes no more than 3 inches thick, pressing the ingredients together (a scoop is helpful). Place the cakes in the crumbs and coat lightly on all sides. Put the cakes on a lined or non-stick baking sheet and dot each with a bit of soft butter. Bake the cakes until just hot about 7-10 minutes.

Serving Size

Makes 6 crab cakes

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Recipe: Sea scallops and roasted garlic potato puree

Ed Brown

Ingredients

Garlic
3 each heads garlic, cut horizontally in half
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 sprig fresh thyme
2 sprig fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons water
Potatoes
4 each medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, cut in 1/2
5 each cloves garlic, peeled, bruised
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 pound sweet butter
Scallops
3/4 pound very large sea scallops, remove muscle and any grit
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon butter
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

For the garlic: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small baking casserole, place garlic cut side down flat, distribute remaining ingredients over and cover with foil. Place in oven for approximately 45 minutes, check to be sure not burning (add some water) when completely tender, remove and cool to room temp. Gently lift over a plate and squeeze each head to remove roasted cloves, reserve.

For the potatoes: In a nonreactive pot combine potatoes and garlic. Cover completely with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until completely tender but not falling apart. Meanwhile, gently warm cream and soften butter. Drain cooked potatoes, place on a cookie sheet in the oven for approximately 10 minutes to dry. Dice dried potatoes directly into warm cream, work in softened butter season with salt and pepper.

For the scallops: In a medium skillet over medium-high heat add oil and butter. Add scallops, cook 1 ½ minutes 1 side, season with salt and pepper, then flip, repeat 2nd side. Remove to a towel to absorb excess fat.

To assemble: Place a small mound of potatoes in center of plate, set 2 scallops per person on each. Top each scallop with some roasted garlic, drizzle with good olive oil, serve.

Serving Size

Serves 4 appetizer portions

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Recipe: Ed's clam chowder

Ed Brown

Ingredients

1/2 cup smoked bacon medium dice
10 ounces butter
1 1/4 cup flour
2 cup leeks, split, washed, medium dice
2 1/2 cup onions, peeled, medium dice
2 1/2 cup celery, washed, medium dice
5 cup clam juice
6 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 cup potatoes, peeled, medium dice
1 1/4 cup dry vermouth
3 cup chowder clams washed, steamed, cleaned and chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

In a large nonreactive sauce pot, melt butter on medium heat. Add the the bacon and melt without color. Add diced vegetables and lower heat to medium and continue to cook till vegetables are tender and fully cooked, approximately 15 minutes. Add flour to make a roux, and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Add vermouth and simmer till reduced almost dry. Add stock, boil then simmer, reduce by 1/4. Add heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes and continue to cook until potatoes are tender. Add chopped clams, season with salt and pepper to taste.