If you’ve read my posts on Berlin and Ocean City, Maryland, The Famous Foods of Maryland, The Best Crab Restaurants in Ocean City, MD, or The Ultimate U.S. Food Bucket List, you know I love a traditional blue crab feast and Maryland crab cakes!

I fell in love with these things when my husband-to-be, Mike, first brought me to Maryland to meet his family while we were in college. His mom’s first dinner for us included a home-steamed bushel of crabs and homemade lump crab cakes. WOW!

Mike’s mom, Halyna, knew right away that I was in love—at least with her crab dishes! So, every visit thereafter, Halyna would celebrate our return with a bushel of crabs and homemade lump crab cakes (and Maryland crab soup and sometimes crab imperial and . . . you get the picture).

One thing soon became clear: Halyna made the best crab cakes on Maryland’s Eastern Shore! But, just like in restaurants, they were always fried.

Always on the lookout for a recipe that needs a healthy overhaul, I decided to create a no-fry Baked Maryland Crab Cake recipe.

This healthy crab cake recipe is so good, it has made it hard for me to enjoy the fried crab cakes served at restaurants—although the ones in Maryland and Virginia on either side of the Chesapeake Bay are my favorites. But just to make sure, I sometimes order those on menus in my state of California or in one of my most beloved seafood cities, Charleston, South Carolina.

Imitation crab cakes are definitely out. Buy fresh or canned lump crab meat and you will not be sorry!

You will see crab claw meat in cans, and that is ok, but the lump crab meat has a richer, less fishy taste. If the expense is an issue, consider mixing the two, rather than opting for the cheaper claw meat all on its own.

I also don’t recommend any imitation crab seasoning; Old Bay is the way to go!

If you want to serve a crab cake sauce, I recommend remoulade, and I have included my Remoulade Sauce recipe below.

Baked Maryland Crab Cakes Recipe

Makes 10 large crab cakes

Ingredients
2 large eggs, beaten
¼ cup light mayonnaise
3 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
2 tablespoons dill, chopped
3 slices white or wheat bread, diced small
2 pounds lump crab meat “picked through”
Olive oil spray
Lemon wedges (optional)

Instructions
1. Mix eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl.
2. Mix in Old Bay and parsley.
3. Add bread into the bowl and fold it in so that everything is mixed well. The secret to these crab cakes is letting this mixture sit for an hour.
4. After the hour, use a spatula to chop up the bread mixture to where the lumps are almost all broken up.
5. Gently fold crab into mixture. Try not to break all of the lumps apart.
6. Form into burger-like cakes. Make these cakes as uniform as possible for even cooking.
7. Place crab cakes on well-sprayed sheet pan. Pat them so that stray pieces of crab are not sticking out, or they will burn and become hard.
8. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes. Pull out of oven and flip each one over. They should be browned on the bottom, and firm enough to flip while still being soft.
9. Bake another 5–10 minutes until cooked through.

Tips
1. If you are making appetizer crab cakes, make 20 per recipe.
2. These crab cakes are delicious on their own, but feel free to try the traditional crab cake sauce, remoulade, below.

Meal Prep
Crab cakes can be fully prepared and cooked ahead for an easy reheating at mealtime.

Remoulade Sauce, aka Crab Cake Sauce

Servings: 10

Ingredients
1 cup light mayonnaise
1 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl until mixed well. That’s it—you’re done!

What to serve with Baked Maryland Crab Cakes

Crab cakes can be filling, so they go well with sides that are a little lighter, like corn on the cob and salads rather than heavy potato-oriented sides. Here are a few recipes I like with these crab cakes:
Kale & Quinoa with Orange Dressing
Nutty Coleslaw
Strawberry Arugula Salad

What to do with leftover Baked Maryland Crab Cakes

The way I see it, there are only 2 good choices for leftover crab cakes.

1. Reheat and eat! They will heat well in the oven or the microwave.

2. Make crab cake sandwiches, of course! And anything goes here. Try the crab cake on a roll with remoulade or tartar sauce mixed with Old Bay. Possible additions to your sandwiches: onions, tomatoes, pickles, bacon, avocado. Gotta go: This is making me hungry!