Tough Cookie

Chesapeake Crab Cakes

with Sauce Gribiche

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

? cup finely chopped celery

? cup finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, crushed

? cup lowfat mayonnaise

? teaspoon dry mustard

? teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt

? to ? teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste

1 pound crabmeat (can use refrigerated pasteurized crab)

1? cups club cracker crumbs, divided in half

2 additional tablespoons vegetable oil, divided in half, plus extra to oil baking pan

In a frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat, add the celery and onion, lower heat, and add garlic. Saute over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until translucent but not brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine mayonnaise with spices. Add crab, ? cup cracker crumbs, celery, onion, and garlic. Stir until well combined. Using a ?-cup measure, scoop out crab mixture and form into 6 cakes about 4 or 5 inches in diameter.

Spread the last ? cup cracker crumbs on a plate. Dredge the cakes in the crumbs.

Preheat oven to 300°F. Lightly oil a 9x13-inch baking pan.

In a wide frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over medium heat until it shimmers. Place 3 crab cakes into the pan and cook approximately 4 minutes per side, until golden brown. Place the cooked crab cakes into the baking pan and put them in the oven while you cook the rest of the crab cakes. Add the second tablespoon of oil to the hot frying pan and cook the last 3 crab cakes approximately 4 minutes per side, until golden brown. Place in the baking pan in the heated oven while preparing the sauce.

Makes 6 crab cakes

Sauce Gribiche:

1? teaspoons finely chopped shallots

2 gherkins, minced

1? teaspoons capers, drained

1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley

1? teaspoons minced fresh tarragon

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

? teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

? teaspoon dry mustard

? teaspoon salt

? teaspoon sugar

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cup lowfat mayonnaise

1 large egg, hard-boiled and finely chopped

In a small electric mincer or well-cleaned coffee grinder, combine shallots, gherkins, capers, parsley, and- tarragon. Pulse for about 5 seconds, or until thoroughly combined and well minced. Set aside. Stir together lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, salt, sugar, and black pepper. Stir into mayonnaise along with egg and minced shallot mixture. Serve with crab cakes.

Ice-Capped

Gingersnaps

? pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1? cups dark brown sugar

2 eggs

? cup dark molasses

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

? teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

? teaspoon ground cloves

? teaspoon ground allspice

? teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

? teaspoon salt

Frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two cookie sheets.

Beat butter until creamy. Add brown sugar and eggs and beat until well combined, then add molasses and vinegar and beat thoroughly. Sift together all the dry ingredients and add-gradually to butter mixture. Using a 1?- tablespoon scoop, space cookies out 2 inches apart on sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies have puffed and flattened and appear slightly dry. Allow to cool on sheet 1 minute, then transfer to racks and allow to cool completely.

Frosting:

1? cups confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons whipping cream

2 tablespoons milk

? teaspoon vanilla extract

In a shallow bowl, mix all ingredients well with a whisk. Holding the cooled cookies upside down by the edges, dip the tops into the icing. Allow to cool, icing side up, on racks until the icing hardens. Store between layers of wax paper in an airtight container.

Makes 5 dozen cookies

I wondered if Arthur had opened the bottle of dessert wine, and if he’d let me chug it after the show.

Muttering, I scooped the fragrant dough into Ping-Pong-ball-size spheres. The phone volunteers raised eyebrows at each other: Some caterer! I slapped the uncooked cookies into what Arch called the “pretend” oven and struggled to compose a last enthusiastic pitch about new equipment for PBS.

Two lights above the phone bank flashed as the ringing halfheartedly resumed. I rinsed my hands and wiped them on the towel. Volunteers murmured to the donors. How much longer? My watch was obscured by gingersnap batter. I plunged back into my monologue, urging viewers to tuck crab-cake sandwiches into their packs before a full day of skiing.

Camera One swept a wide-angle panorama of the hot line burgeoning with the completed, cooked dishes. Then the cameraman focused on the volunteers manning the phones, which had once again, drat them, gone dead. Arthur, pale with panic, shifted to a visual with the phone number viewers could call. He then ran a prepared tape of