After preparing a plethora of Valentine’s sweets, I once again have post-holiday “dessert burnout” syndrome. Thus, I now find myself constantly craving protein –for breakfast, lunch, dinner and even snacks.
I will be eating a lot of these tasty little seafood patties in this new phase of protein craze. Hence I am delighted to share one of my favorite recipes with you –this one for simple, savory shrimp cakes.
Shrimp Cakes
Ingredients
- 1 pound (raw) shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 red or yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, freshly squeezed
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt (adjust to your taste, I like things salty)
- ¼ teaspoon ground chipotle
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup cilantro, finely chopped
- ½ cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil, for sautéing
Instructions
- Place shrimp in food processor, pulse until finely chopped
- In a large bowl, combine chopped shrimp, bell pepper, garlic, scallions, lime juice, salt, chipotle, egg and cilantro
- Form mixture into 12 (½) inch thick patties, dip each in almond flour, coating thoroughly
- In a 9 inch skillet, over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon oil
- Add 4 patties to the skillet and cook about 5 minutes per side, until browned; remove and place on paper towel lined plate
- Repeat with remaining cakes
This gluten-free, high protein recipe for shrimp cakes is one of E’s favorites and also my husband’s. J won’t eat it unless under duress, preferring grilled cheese and quesadillas to just about anything I make these days. Alas, we had a good run for so many years where he was completely adventurous in his eating.
Now he is a pure carbo-holic asking me to pack him a lunch of sweetened, flavored yogurt with fruit leather. I have defied this wish of his and lunch comes home untouched day after day. Yesterday, after another virgin lunch came in the door, I asked him what was up and he said, “Mom, if you’d only pack me something good, then I would eat it!” Ok, yogurt and fruit leather, here we come. Can’t starve the boy.
As for myself? I’m sticking with the shrimp cakes.
John A. Bevil says
I am going to try your shrimp cakes. I am an extremely low-carber, so I am always looking for something to treat myself with… I’m not a cilantro fan, so I’ll drop that ingredient. The almond flour – perfect. Think I’ll use coconut oil for cooking them. Like you, I crave protein of almost any kind, for all my meals. The agave nectar is an interesting ingredient. I may also add in two TBS of minced sweet-n-hot jalapenos to give them a little bit of a pop. I’ll let you know how they turn out.
P.S. I have been doing low carb for about a year and a half. I’m an obstacle course runner (Tough Mudders, Spartans, Savage Races, etc.) – so I enjoy staying lean and limber.
Best,
John B.
Elana says
John, it’s so nice to meet you here! I hope you love these burgers as much as we do and that you’ll stop back by to keep me in the loop on your competitions :-)
Arlyn says
Made this tonight and modified for AIP, came out delicious and my family loved it! I used 2 lbs of shrimp so I doubled many of the ingredients and deleted the night shades (all pepper) and egg. Instead I used 2 tbs flax meal, parsley, onion, carrot, and celery (lime, garlic, agave and salt as per recipe). Rolled in almond flour as called for with no problems; made 13 cakes. Thanks Elana!
Elana says
Arlyn, thanks for letting me know your family loved these shrimp cakes!
Jessica says
These sound amazing! Has anyone tried with crab instead of shrimp? What’s a good sauce to use with them? Maybe a mango salsa?
Leah says
Best. Shrimp Cakes. Ever! I didn’t have any agave & thought the taste of honey might be too much, so I substituted demerara sugar. My mom doesn’t like cilantro so I used parsley instead. My family loved the shrimp cakes.
I used the food processor to chop the pepper, scallions, garlic & parsley, transferred to a colander & drained the liquid. Next I prepared the shrimp in the food processor & added what I previously processed, including the remaining ingredients.
I found the mixture easier to work with after I added some almond flour. Next time I will beat the egg before adding it to the food processor. I still lightly coated the patties with almond flour. The cooking time was spot on. I served broccoli slaw as a side.