Fish Cakes

Yesterday Kent and my dad went fishing on the Missouri River down by Hazelton. My dad caught four and my hubby caught zero, but Kent still came home with a bag of walleye fillets thanks to my dear dad's generous nature.

I can't tell you how thankful I am that they get along so well. They can go hang out and talk in a boat all day without me being there - that's pretty cool. I hear so many stories of difficult in-law relationships that end up pitting spouse against parent and vice versa. I've even heard of these relationships tearing families apart. Kent and I are so lucky not to have that drama hanging over our little family. Instead, our relationships with each other's parents has blossomed into a loving, supportive network of extended family, creating a warm and cozy environment for our little boy to grow up in.

Ben wearing Dad's fishing hat. Classic.

Back to the fish, Fine Cooking had a great piece on crab cakes recently. I adore crab cakes, but fresh crab in ND is frankly outside our grocery budget. So I thought, 'Why not substitute fish?' I steamed those fresh fillets that were just pulled out of the water hours ago, broke it up into chunks, and followed the crab cake recipe - and it worked beautifully!

Fish Cakes

I used walleye, but other fish would probably work - trout, cod, maybe even catfish (although catfish can get mushy in my experience). Old Bay seasoning is available in the spice aisle of your grocery store.

1 lb. fish fillets, steamed, cooled, and broken into small chunks

1 egg

1/4 c. mayo

1 and 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 and 1/2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

1 and 1/4 cups fresh breadcrumbs (i.e. grind up 4 slices Wonder bread in food processor)

1 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbs. butter

1 Tbs. olive oil

Lemon wedges

Put fish in medium mixing bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together egg, mayo, mustard, Old Bay, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and salt. Pour mixture over fish and mix gently until combined - don't want to break up the fish into mush.

Sprinkle breadcrumbs and parsley over mixture, then mix thoroughly but gently - mixture should still be somewhat loose. Refrigerate mixture for one hour.

Shape mixture into 8 cakes about 1" thick. Heat butter and oil over medium heat in cast-iron or non-stick pan until butter is melted and frothy. Add cakes to pan and cook until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook on other side until browned, another 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels and serve with lemon wedges.