We've all made cornbread to go with our autumn chili, but half the time the loaf of maize goes stale before it's all eaten up. That's what happened to me earlier this week when I had half a skillet of cast iron skillet cornbread sitting, waiting and growing drier every second. At first I thought crab cakes, but it's not really crab season so I went and got some chopped clams instead. The reason for the clams is really just because my local grocery store sells chopped clams for about $5 a pound. It's cheap and it's the right meat for the job. (phrasing)

I served my cakes with a cranberry sauce, which is just cranberries, water, sugar and a dash of Chinese five-spice. That's it. In addition to the crimson coloring I also puréed up some walnuts, olive, salt and parsley. Kind of like a pesto, but completely different. 

FOOD ART!

Oregon Cranberries! Which are the best in the nation, I will cranberry-bog wrestle anyone who disagrees with me. 

Cornbread Clam Cakes

  • 1 1/2 cups Stale Homemade Cornbread crumbled
  • 2/3 cups Chopped Clams
  • 1/2 cup Buttermilk
  • 2 Eggs
  • 2 Carrots grated
  • 2 Stalks of Celery chopped
  • 2 Shallots minced
  • 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
  • Salt to taste 
  • Sunflower Seed Oil enough to cover your skillet at a 1/4 depth 
  1. Add all ingredients into a large mixing bowl except for the sunflower seed oil, which I use for frying because of it's high smoke point. After you've mixed everything, set the bowl in the fridge while you clean and prep for the next step. Oh, and now would be a good time to make those sauces. 
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. 
  3. Form small patties no more that 2 inches wide, with the corn bread mixtures and place in the hot oil. Cook until golden brown on each side about 5 minutes on each side. Use a fish flipper to flip for fritters.  
  4. Serve with those sauces and enjoy!  

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