As I was thinking of new and exciting fish recipes for this Jewish Holiday season, I had this idea, to make a kosher version of a ‘Crab Cake’ using halibut instead.  Perhaps one night or for lunch, I will serve this instead of salmon with tomato sauce or gefilte fish.  My husband ate them all in moments on the day I made them.  I just served  cakes with plain diced vine ripe tomatoes but you could make a tartar sauce or citrus sauce for them as well.

Serves 3 to 4 with two cakes each ^[1]

8 ounce filet of halibut

Salt

Pepper

1/ 3 cup minced red bell pepper

1/ 3 cup minced fennel

1/ 3 cup minced celery

1/ 4 cup chopped parsley

1/ 2 cup mayonnaise

1/ 3 cup Panko crumbs

2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest

Salt

Pepper

Safflower oil for frying

Place halibut filet in a small shallow pan with a lid.  Season fish with salt and pepper.  Fill pan with enough water to barely cover top of fish.  Cover fish with a lid and bring to a boil.  Turn off heat and allow fish to cool in pan.  When fish is cool,remove it from pan, break it into chunks, and place chunks in a medium bowl.  Add vegetables, mayonnaise, panko crumbs and zest.  Season halibut mix to taste.

Gently shape halibut and vegetables into patties or cakes and place on a plate .  They hold together very delicately.  Heat a large sauté pan on medium high heat.  Fill pan with about 1/ 4 inch of oil.  When oil is medium-hot, not smoking add halibut cakes.  It is best to use a non-stick pan.

When halibut cakes are turning gold around bottom edges, flip cakes, using a plastic spatula designed for non stick cookware.  When both sides of cake are golden brown, remove from oil and drain on a plate until time to serve.  I would serve 2 per person.  This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.

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