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Maryland Crab Cakes

• 4 slices white bread
• 1 cup milk
• 2 pounds jumbo lump crab meat
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons prepared mustard
• 2 teaspoons seafood seasoning
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• juice of ½ lemon
• salt and pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 to 4 tablespoons shortening for frying

Put bread in bowl, pour milk over it and soak 15 minutes. Squeeze bread fairly dry in your fist, transfer it to a large bowl and break it into crumbs with two forks.

Add crab meat, mayonnaise, mustard, seafood seasoning, baking powder and parsley and stir until well mixed. Sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and stir and taste for seasoning. Stir in beaten eggs. Crab cake mixture can be prepared up to 4 hours ahead and refrigerated.

To finish, divide mixture into 16 parts and shape into cakes about ½-inch thick. Work gently so cakes are light. In a large frying pan heat half the shortening and fry half the cakes over brisk heat until golden, about 2 minutes. Turn and brown the other side. Fry remaining cakes in remaining shortening and serve as soon as possible.

Yields 16 servings.