Crisp fish cakes with a tangy roasted red pepper sauce make a satisfying main course for lunch or brunch. Simon Pearce serves them with Two-Potato Pancakes and mixed fresh greens with julienned vegetables. Plus: More Seafood Recipes and Tips
How to Make It
Preheat the oven to 400°. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium nonreactive roasting pan and cover tightly with foil. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Transfer the vegetables and any accumulated juices to a blender or food processor and puree the vegetable mixture until smooth. Leave the oven on.
Season the cod fillets with salt and pepper and arrange them on a lightly oiled nonstick baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the flesh flakes easily. Let cool.
Flake the cod into a large bowl and add the crabmeat, fresh bread crumbs, red bell pepper, celery, scallions, lemon juice, mustard and 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Season with salt and pepper.
On a plate, toss the dry bread crumbs with the remaining 1 tablespoon of parsley and season with salt and pepper. Divide the cod and crab mixture into 12 parts and shape each into a 1-inch-thick cake. Coat each cake well with the seasoned bread crumbs.
Rewarm the coulis in a nonreactive saucepan. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add 4 of the cod and crab cakes and cook over moderately high heat until golden and crisp on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Gently turn the cakes and cook until golden on the other side, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Transfer to a platter and keep warm in a low oven. Fry the remaining cakes in 2 more batches, using 2 tablespoons of oil for each batch.
Spoon the red pepper coulis onto 6 large plates. Set 2 cod and crab cakes on each plate and serve with lemon wedges.