Yield: 4-6 Servings

Ingredients:

Crab Cakes
• 1 large egg, beaten
• ½ cup fresh white bread crumbs
• 1 Tablespoon parsley, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon capers, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon minced onion
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Cayenne pepper, to taste
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 1 pound lump crab meat, picked over
• Canola oil, for frying
  
  
Béarnaise Sauce
• 3 egg yolks
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 1 Tablespoon tarragon, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon shallots, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon black pepper
• ¾ pound butter, melted, warm
  
  
Oven Dried Tomatoes
• 3 plum tomatoes, cut lengthwise into 1/8ths
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Olive oil, to taste
• Thyme, to taste
  
  
Asparagus
• 12 asparagus stalks
  
  
Poached Egg
• 3 quarts water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 Tablespoon white vinegar
• 6 eggs

Method:

For Crab Cakes:
Combine all ingredients except crab in a mixing bowl. Fold crab in gently. Form into 2 ounce cakes, makes about 8-10. Dredge in more bread crumbs and pan fry in canola oil until golden on both sides.

For Béarnaise Sauce:
Place yolks, lemon juice, tarragon, shallots, vinegar and pepper in a stainless steel bowl and whisk over double boiler until mixture is thick and smooth, approximately 5-8 minutes. Whisk in warm butter slowly until sauce is thickness of lightly whipped cream. Keep warm until service.

For Oven Dried Tomatoes:
Preheat oven to 200°F. Place tomato wedges on a sheet pan and sprinkle with salt, pepper, olive oil and thyme. Bake in oven 1 ½ - 2 hours, or until soft and tender.

For Asparagus:
Steam asparagus and set aside until service.

For Poached Eggs:
Set up a 4 qt. shallow sauce pan with water, salt and vinegar. Heat water until just about boiling. Crack eggs in a bowl, then pour into water, placing each egg in clockwise order. Cook over medium heat until just set.

To Assemble:
Place warm crab cakes on plates. Set warm asparagus and a few oven dried tomatoes next to cakes. Top each crab cake with a well drained poached egg and top with Béarnaise sauce!