Fathers Day Dinner

I see my dad very frequently. We typically go to lunch together almost every week. It's our time to hang out and talk. We've been doing these lunch dates ever since I started college and haven't stopped since (Even now, when I work in Conshohocken, he stays home from work to have lunch with me). I believe that my dad loves food almost as much as I do. We love to go out to new restaurants together and try new things. Food is definitely something that we connect on.

My dad embraces my passion for food. When I was younger, my dad and I would go to Wegmans and spend the whole entire afternoon perusing through the isles and looking at all of the products. My dad would patiently wait for me while I explored and got lost in all of the ingredients. I still love to go to Wegmans and walk around and explore (I'm the girl who takes hours at the grocery store). Also when I was younger, he would come home from work with special cheeses and olives from Di Bruno Brothers for me. It would always make me feel special. I know these things might sound strange to anyone but these are the special memories that I have with my father when I was growing up.

I never get the chance to cook for dad though. Typically when I see him, we go out to eat or my mom cooks, but he always asks me to cook for him. (He is also my editor for this blog and he always wants me to make the recipes that I blog about for him). Tonight since it is Father Day I told him I was going to make him a special dinner.

Since it's the summer, I decided to make a White Gazpacho as our starter. White Gazpacho is different from regular Gazpacho because it is made with grapes instead of tomatoes. My dad loves crabs so I decided to make him Crab Cakes as our entree. I paired the crab cakes with an Apple Slaw and placed it over a bed of whipped dijon and horseradish sweet potatoes.

Here is how I did it:

Crab Cakes with Dijon & Horseradish 

Whipped Sweet Potatoes and Apple Slaw

White Gazapacho: 
- 1 pounds of green grapes
- 1 large cucumber (Peel and discard the seeds)
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 1/2 Marcona Almonds
- 3 tbs red wine vinegar
- 1 clove of garlic
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 1 lime
- 1/4 tsp hot pepper
- Salt and pepper to taste

Crab Cakes: 
- 1 pound jumbo lump crab meat
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/4 cup chopped red pepper
- 1 celery stalk chopped
- 1 tbs scallion
- 1 tbs chives
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup egg whites
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp lemon pepper
- 2 tbs dijon horseradish mustard
- 1/2 juice of a lemon
- 1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 cup panko bread crumbs

Dijon & Horseradish Whipped Sweet potatoes 

- 2 sweet potatoes

- 1/2 cup almond milk 

- 2 tbs dijon & horseradish mustard 

- Salt and pepper to taste 

Apple Slaw
- 1 small granny smith apple
- 3 cups chopped green cabbage
- 1 cup chopped red cabbage
- 3 tbs red wine vinegar
- 2 tbs dijon horseradish mustard
- 2 tbs honey
- Salt and pepper to taste

For the gazpacho, wash and take of the stems of the grapes. Peel and discard the seeds of your cucumber. Chop the cucumber in large pieces so you can easily blend in a blender. Place the grapes, cucumber, and the rest of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. 

Serve chilled with a piece of toasted bread to dip in. 

For the crab cakes, place finely chopped onions, pepper, celery, scallion, chives and garlic in a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients besides the panko bread crumbs and crab meat. Once the ingredients are mixed, fold in 1/2 cup of panko and the crab meat. I used jumbo lump crab meat from the store. 

Place the other 1/2 cup of panko bread crumbs in a shallow bowl to dip in once you have formed your crab cakes. You should be able to make 6 large crab cakes out of this mixture. Once you have formed the crab cakes and dipped them in the bread crumbs, place on a baking dish. Bake at 450 for 12-15 minutes until they are lightly brown. 

For the whipped sweet potatoes, Peel and boil your potatoes in salted water until they are tender. Drain and place in a bowl. Add the other ingredients and whip with a beater or mash with a fork. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place under the crab cakes. 

For the slaw, peel and dice your apple lengthwise and add them to the 4 cups of chopped cabbage. Mix the vinegar, mustard and honey in a separate bowl and pour over the slaw. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over the crab cakes.   

My dad loved everything I made for him tonight. The gazpacho was probably one of the tastiest soups I have ever made and it was so refreshing to eat on a summer night. The crab cakes were light and delicious and was the perfect dish to serve as our entree. 

By the way, like the new dishes that I got from IKEA?? They are from the new Stockholm collection, they'll be in stores in August! I'm in love with them! 

Anne 

This post is dedicated to my Father. Thank you dad for everything that you've done for me. Words can't describe how appreciative and thankful I am to have you in my life. You have always been there to support me in all of aspirations and are always the person I go to for advice. I love you daddy.