Annapolis Seafood Markets is a chain of seafood markets with 3 locations around the Baltimore/Annapolis area.  Their stores offer a variety of fresh seafood and prepared items available for carry out.  Annapolis Seafood tends to be a local's secret, with their seafood being bought and prepared fresh daily.  Friend of the CCR Kerry G. shared this little secret with us, saying that someone in her family who typically hates seafood requests their crab cakes all the time.  While she may be referring to the jumbo lump crab cakes, anyplace with such rave reviews from the non-seafaring types must be good!  So with such high regards in mind, the CCR set sail for their nearest Annapolis Seafood Market with their sights set on crab cakes.  How were they?  Let's find out!

Way back in December 2011, friend of the Review Jeff L had suggested Box Hill (see, we do listen!).  Our first thought was "A pizzeria?  Really?"  But then we looked into it, and eventually made the visit.  While it may not look like much from the outside, take a step inside, and you'll immediately notice all of the celebrity photos, as well as the wall of awards.  Continually being showered with awards and praise (such as Best Crab Cake by Baltimore Magazine in 2009), the Box Hill Pizzeria has been delivering crab cakes from a secret family recipe since 1984, both to the table as well as through the mail.  So with all of the talk, the CCR was set to see if the rumors were true.  Follow along as we take a road trip up to the Bel Air area to feast our eyes (and our mouths) on these award winning crab cakes!

The Edgewater Restaurant has been around since 1948, and is one of those local institutions that will get people all excited at just a mention of the name.  A sheer testament to their ability to survive as long as they have, you'll get the same reaction from everyone -- the crab cakes are their most favorite thing in the world.  But, the one thing they neglect to tell you, is WHICH crab cakes are their favorite.  You see, Edgewater sells two kinds -- jumbo lump and backfin.  One could assume that the jumbo lumps are it, but if you happen to show up on a Wednesday, you'll notice that the backfin crab cakes are the special of the day!  Not wanting to pass up a good deal, the CCR decided to focus their efforts on the backfins, at least this time around.  Are they as legendary as jumbo lumps?  Time to see for ourselves!

As the old saying goes:  everything is better with bacon.  But does that apply to crab cakes?  The CCR went to the Test Kitchen to find out!

The bacon crab cake is just our Basic Crab Cake with bacon added to it:

1 egg
1 lb. crab meat
Bread crumbs (~1/2 cup to start) or 2 slices of bread with crusts cut off, ripped into small pieces
Spices (optional - the CCR uses 6 - 7 dashes of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce and 3 - 4 dashes of Old Bay)
Bacon (about 2-3 strips, uncooked)
Oil  (Safflower oil works well)

Step 1:  Crack the egg into a bowl and pour in some bread crumbs.  If using jumbo lump, you may want to beat the egg before adding the bread crumbs in order to minimize breakage.
Step 2:  Cut up strips of bacon into small chunks.  The smaller the better, but go by preference if you think you'll like chunkier bits in your cake.
Step 3:  Add crab meat and spices.  Carefully mix by hand until blended, adding more bread crumbs as needed/desired.
Step 4:  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.  For best results, chill overnight.
Step 5:  Form into patties and cook as desired:

Fried:  Use enough oil so that it covers the bottom half of the crab cake.  Depending on your stove, keep the heat to low or medium.  When in doubt, try cooking a small crab ball to test.  Cook each side until golden brown, about 1.5 - 2 minutes per side should do it (depending on your stove/heat settings/etc).

Oven:  Cook at 375˚ for 12 - 15 minutes until golden brown.

Backfin crab meat was used during this trail run.  While jumbo lump may also be used, chopping up the bacon may be better suited for backfin.  As far as bacon goes, a really good, applewood smoked bacon will add a nice flavor to the crab cake.  I

One set of crab cakes had Trader Joe's Bits and Pieces bacon chopped up into it, the other had Trader Joe's thick-sliced bacon wrapped around like a filet.  The bacon-wrapped cakes were hard to cut into, even with the bacon cooked, and didn't really impart much bacon flavor.  The cakes with the bacon chopped up in it had a nice bacon flavor throughout, and were the most enjoyable out of the two.

Always choose fresh, premium quality crab meat for best results.  If it's on ice, then it's a good start.  Beware of the retail packages found in the refrigerated sections of the fish section.  If that is your only choice, compare the ingredient labels.  For example, Safeway's Waterfront Bistro label, Chicken of the Sea, and Philips all sell jumbo lump crab meat in 8oz containers, but the crab used is blue swimmer, not Maryland blue.  (Maryland blue crabs have a more intense, sweeter flavor than other crab varieties, hence why Maryland is known the world over for their crabs/crab cakes.)  The other thing to watch out for is the opaque packaging with a small window in the lid, allowing the packer to hide smaller or broken pieces of crab meat underneath the few lumps placed on top.

Back in January, the CCR encountered Handy Crab Cakes, hoping that stumbling across a brand they've never seen before might actually be a frozen crab cake that is a worthy substitute for when you can't get a freshly made one.  As it turns out -- not so much.  Alongside those regular crab cakes were the Crab & Shrimp Cakes.  Call us a glutton for punishment, or maybe just consider us adventurous.  But we went ahead and bought a package.  For science!  They are, according to their website,  America's oldest seafood processor, who still maintains a plant in Crisfield, MD.  In this day and age of rampant patriotism, we say let's support the local Maryland economy and give them another shot.  Were these any better?  Let's find out!

Eden's Landing is the bar/restaurant located inside the BWI Doubletree, serving contemporary American cuisine with a twist.  When traveling to new places, either for business or pleasure, the hotel restaurant can be a very convenient choice when it comes to dinner (especially if you don't have transportation).  Maybe after lugging the kids around the harbor all day, you don't quite feel like trying to figure out where else to go.  But you're in Maryland, and it becomes that unspoken tradition to have some crab cakes!  Are the ones at Eden's Landing worth trying?  Read along and find out!

Captain Billy's has been around since 1947, located right on the Potomac River, near the same spot where a young Billy used to sell crabs.  Today, it is a thriving restaurant with a nice deck overlooking the river.  So you might be asking yourself, just where is this Captain Billy's?  It's down south.  Way down south.  You know where Waldorf is?  Keep going.  Skip La Plata and, yup, keep going.  Don't worry.  There's a large billboard by the side of 301 to tell you where to turn.  The other option is to come by boat.  But you're on your own for those directions!  Either way, you've made it here with crab cakes on your mind.  Was it worth the trip?  Let's find out!

Luminous is the hotel bar/restaurant located at the Westin BWI.  Usually hotel restaurants can be hit or miss, but the Westin name sort of carries along some cred for being better quality than your average Courtyard.  And when you walk into the lobby, you certainly get that from the allure of the decor to the attention to detail.  And while perusing the menu trying to see if it shall be here that you dine, or the Bob Evans down the street, your eyes happen to notice the crab cakes.  You're probably here on business, which begs the question if you should get your crab cake fix here, or find somewhere else.  Well look no further!  Read on and see for yourself....

Gambrills is currently undergoing some big changes as of late.  First there came The Village at Waugh Chapel Shopping Center.  Now there is the Waugh Chapel Town Center being developed (which brings Wegman's to this neck of the woods!  Yyeeesssss!).  Not really much else around here, so you might as well get your shopping done, and then knock off for the rest of the day with some dinner and drinks.  Which brings us to the Four Seasons Grill -- an eclectic fusion of Mediterranean and American cuisine.  They've been around since 2006, and always seem to be packed.  So are they worth visiting for crab cakes?  Let's find out!

While we may not have had much of a winter this past season, it's always winter over at The Lodge.  The central theme is winter ski lodge, complete with chair lifts for seats, wooden statues for some of the barstools, and lots of ski artifacts, such as signs, snowshoes, skis, etc.  Of course, when winter strikes, thoughts usually don't turn to crab cakes.  But, this is late spring, and crab season is upon us.  So should you brave the cold and snow to get your crab cakes?  Or stay in and keep warm by the fire?  Continue reading to see what we thought!