Clam Cakes Remoulade

Ingredients

For the remoulade:

• 1 cup high-quality mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce, such as Cholula or Sriracha
• 1 teaspoon seafood seasoning, such as Obrycki’s or Old Bay
• 1 large pickle spear, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon pickle juice
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika

For the clam cakes:

• 6 ounces of clams, freshly steamed or canned and drained
• 1 small onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 small red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
• 1 stalk celery, trimmed and cut into chunks
• 12 spicy corn tortilla chips, such as Garden of Eatin’ Red Hot Blues 
• 1 cup white whole wheat flour, divided
• 1/2 cup high-quality mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoons hot sauce, such as Cholula or Sriracha
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Step 1

For the remoulade: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until needed.

Step 2

For the clam cakes: If you’re steaming fresh clams, reserve the juice they release for another recipe. If you’re using large cherrystones, use kitchen shears to cut them into pieces for easier processing. Pulse the clams, vegetables, and chips in a food processor until you get a fine dice. Transfer to a large bowl and fold in half the flour, the mayo, hot sauce, and parsley. Form into about 10 small or 6 large patties. 

Step 3

Place the rest of the flour in a pie plate. Heat a heavy skillet and then add the olive oil. Very lightly dip both sides of each patty into the flour, shake off any excess, and place in skillet. Cook until a light crust develops, about 5 to 8 minutes. Flip and cook for another 5 minutes.

Step 4

Transfer the clam cakes to a serving dish or individual plates. Top with dollops of the remoulade and pass more on the side.