top of page
MainDish_AmyFossett.jpeg

Do you have a favorite recipe using Maryland Blue Crab?

 

If so, it may be a prize winner!

 

Enter it in the Derby Crab Cooking Contest held every year.

60th CRAB COOKING CONTEST
Contest Date- Friday, August 30, 2024

Winners Receive a Plaque and a Cash Prize!

 

A panel of food experts will choose the most mouthwatering entries in the contest's FOUR categories: Appetizer, Soup/Salad, Main Dish, and Crab Cakes.

 

Judges will evaluate entries based on appearance, overall flavor, crab flavor, originality, texture, clear directions, ease of preparation, ease of serving, and appropriate use of crab meat.

The top three recipes in each group will receive a plaque and a cash prize, ranging from $50 to $100. From the four 1st Place winners, judges will select a Grand Prize winner who will receive an additional $100. The Best Presentation winner will also receive honors.

At the end of the judging, as the entrants finish cooking, their dishes go to the judges.  At the end of judging, everyone gets to sample the dishes and pick their favorites. 

The deadline for entries will be Friday, August 23, 2024.

 

More information can be obtained by calling the Crisfield Chamber office at 410-968-2500 or by sending an email to office@crisfieldchamberofcommerce.com.

60th CRAB COOKING CONTEST
2024 PRIZE WINNERS

Appetizers 1st - Daniel Albert, Crab & Potato Puppies

2nd - Amy Fossett, Herbed Crab Salad Avocado Toast
3rd - Shenna Ross, Jala At My Crab Dip

Main Dish 1st - Landon & Madeline Marut, Crabby Smash!
2nd - Amy Fossett, Crab Cake Club Sliders
3rd - Glenn Marshall, Crab Souffle

Crab Cakes 1st - Shenna Ross, Summer Salsa Crab Cakes
2nd - Raymond Lord, Hearts Ease Crab Cakes
3rd - Leon Fossett, It’s Greek to Me Crab Cakes

Soup/Salad 1st - June Lewis, Pasta Crab Salad

2nd - Leon Fossett, Blueberry Corn Crab Salad
3rd - G. Walker, Crab Stew

Best Presentation

Amy Fossett, Crab Cake Club Sliders

Grand Prize Winner

Shenna Ross, Summer Salsa Crab Cakes

​​
Ingredients for Summer Salsa
½ cup fresh corn
Tomatoes, finely cut
Sweet Onions
1/4 cup cilantro
1 t sea salt
Smashed Avocado


Ingredients for the Crab Cake
One pound Maryland Blue crab Meat
One large egg beaten
½ cup panko bread crumbs
2 t Old Bay seasoning
1 t onion powder
1 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
¼ t black pepper
3 T butter melted
¼ t scotch bonnet sauce
½ t smoked paprika

In a pan over medium heat, sauté half a cup of fresh corn, finely cut tomatoes, sweet onions,
and 1/4 cup cilantro in a pan over 2 tablespoons of melted salted butter and finish with a toss
with a teaspoon of sea salt and smashed avocado.  Set aside to top on the crab cake.
For the crab cake, mix in a medium size bowl one pound of blue Maryland lump crab meat, one
beaten large egg, half a cup of panko bread crumbs mixed with 2 teaspoons of old bay seasoning,
one teaspoon of onion powder,  one tablespoon of fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon of
black pepper, 3 tablespoons of melted butter 1/4 teaspoon of scotch bonnet sauce and 1/2
teaspoon of smoked paprika


Mix together then air fry for 10-12 minutes at 400 degrees.


Serve the salsa on top of the crab cake with shredded cheddar cheese on the side.

FEATURED EVENTS

Crab Cooking Contest

CONNECT WITH CRISFIELD

  • Facebook Social Icon
  • Twitter Social Icon

DOWNLOAD
THE VISITOR GUIDE

ADVERTISE WITH US

seafood logo.jpg

The Crab Cooking Contest is supported by the Maryland Department of Agriculture Seafood Marketing Program.

2024 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Summer Salsa Crab Cakes

(Crab Cakes)

cookingoverallwinner.jpg

Grand Prize Winner (Crab Cakes)

 Shenna Ross

of Bowie, Maryland .   

2024 Winners

 Appetizer

crabandpotpuppies24.jpg

Main Dish

LandonandMadelinesoup.jpg

Soups & Salads

Salad

June Lewis

Pasta Crab Salad

Best Presentation

bestpresentationAmyFossett.jpg

Amy Fossett

Crab Cake Club Sliders

2023 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Crazy Good Crab Quiche

(Main Dish)

Pre-baked single pie crust:
1 1⁄4 C flour
1⁄4 tsp salt
10 Tbsp unsalted butter
2-3 Tbsp ice water

 

Cube 10 TBSP cold unsalted butter and put in the fridge. In a food processor, use on/off button to mix 1 1/4 c flour and 1/4 tsp salt. Add the cubed butter and pulse until it looks like chunky sand, then add ice water, typically max of 2-3 Tbsp. Refrigerate dough for about an hour and up to a day. Preheat oven to 425. Roll out crust, fitting it to the pie pan, trimming and shaping the edge.  (If you've forgotten to put the oven on at this point, put the pie pan with crust into the fridge. You want the dough to be cold when it goes into the oven.)  Prick bottom several times with a fork, and then lay foil and dry beans or pie weights into the pan.  Bake for 12-15 minutes - it should be light brown and set aside to cool.

Filling:

1 lb lump crab

5-6 eggs

2⁄3 C crème fraîche or heavy cream

1 C milk or half & half

8 oz gruyere cheese, grated

2-3 very thinly sliced green onions

1 tsp Old Bay

1⁄2 tsp Colman's Mustard, dry

1⁄4 tsp white pepper

Toss the crab meat with spices in a small bowl. In another bowl, whisk eggs, cream, and milk until blended, then blend in cheese using spatula, followed by seasoned crab and green onions.  Pour mixture into prepared piecrust - use spatula to ensure crab, cheese, and green onions are evenly distributed. Bake until golden brown, approximately 30 minutes - it's done when you jiggle the dish and there are no ripples in the middle. Serve immediately.

Crab Derby 2023 Recipe Winner.jpg

Grand Prize Winner (Main Dish)

 Christie Albert

of Raleigh, North Carolina.   

2023 Winners

 Appetizer

app1stsarahvVanHoy.jpg

Sarah VanHoy

 Savory Crab Dip

Crab Cakes

1stcrabcakesjackalbert.jpg

Jack Albert

Maryland Popper Crab Cakes

Soups & Salads

1stsoupLeonFossett.jpg

Leon Fossett

Summer Crab, Peach, Corn & Tomato Salad

Best Presentation

bestpresentationAmyFossett.jpg

Amy Fossett

Crab Stuffed Soft Shell

2022 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Sweet n' Spicy Crab Cakes

Ingredients:

            1 lb.     Maryland Blue Crab meat

            12        Ritz crackers (finely crushed)

            1          egg

            2 tbs    mayonnaise

            1 tbs    sweet and spicy mustard

            1 tsp    Worcestershire sauce

            1/2 tsp honey

            1 tsp    Old Bay

            1 tsp    sugar

            1          baking powder

            1 tbs    parsley (chopped)

            1/4 tsp horseradish

            2 - 3     drops Zatarain’s shrimp and crab boil

            2 - 3     drops Sriracha Hot Sauce

            1          shake each garlic powder, oregano, cayenne red pepper

Finely crush Ritz crackers. 

Add crackers to dry ingredients and mix

Mix wet and dry ingredients together

Fold in crab meat. 

Form into six crab cakes and if possible refrigerate for at least an hour before frying or broiling.

Optional:  Sprinkle some Japanese seasoned Panko crumbs on the surface of the crab cakes before frying or broiling.  This will add a little extra flavor and a crunchiness to the crab cakes.

2022 Grand Prize Winning Recipe 2.jpg
2022 Grand Prize Winning Recipe 1.jpg

Sarah VanHoy - Salisbury, Maryland

   Sweet n' Spicy Crab Cakes

2022 Winners

Appetizer

2022 Winners Appetizer Terry Campuzano Cheesy Crab Pinwheels.jpg

Terry Campuzano
Cheesy Crab Pinwheels

Main Dish

Main Dish Jodi Jones Smoth Crab Avacado Toast.jpg

Jodi Jones Smith
Crab Avocado Toast

Soups & Salads

Soups & Salads Jeanetter Scofield Watermelon Gazpacho with Crab Towers.jpg

Jeanette Scofield
Watermelon Gazpacho with Crab Towers

2021 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Asian Crab Balls

Appetizer

Ingredients:

1lb crabmeat
1 T minced bell pepper
1 T minced onion
¾ tsp. wet or dry mustard
½ to 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning (suit your taste)
3 dashes of soy sauce
½ tsp sesame oil
Fold these ingredients together gently.

White Sauce
2T Butter
2 T flour
1/3 cup milk
Cook over medium heat to make a smooth and creamy sauce. Pour
over crabmeat and mix gently.

Kim Todd.jpg

Kim Todd

Crisfield, Maryland


In a small bowl, mix together:

½ cup (heaping) Panko Crumbs

½ (heaping coconut flakes

In another small bowl:

1 well beaten egg mixed with ¼ cup cold water

Make balls about the size of a quarter. Roll in panko and coconut mixture,

then in egg mixture, then in panko and coconut again. Fry in a deep fryer

or a pan on the stove with enough Crisco to cover the balls. Fry until

golden brown. Enjoy!

2021 Winners
2021 Winners

Crab Cakes

Main Dish

Soups & Salads

Best Presentation

unnamed.jpg
MainDish_AmyFossett.jpeg
Soup_Salad_JuneLewis.jpeg
BestPresentation_JohnScofield.jpeg

Leon Fossett

     Scampi Crab Cakes

Amy Fossett

Open Faced Green Tomato Crab Melt

June Lewis

Easy Summer Crab Salad

John Scofield

Crab Stuffed Pistolettes

The COVID-19 Pandemic brought many changes to Crisfield and the National Hard Crab Derby as well. Covid restrictions caused the cancellation of many events, but the 56th Annual Crab Cooking Contest went ahead with masks, social distancing, and lots of disinfectants.

Due to a much smaller number of cooks, we changed our prize structure. Instead of awarding prizes in categories, we awarded 1st, 2nd, 3rd, & 4th Place and Best Presentation prizes.

2020 Winners

2nd Place

Mary Schafer, Maryland Crab Pea Soup.jpeg

Mary Shafer

      Maryland Crab      Pea Soup

3rd Place

Leon Fossett, Not Your Grandfather’s Crab Cake.jpeg

Leon Fossett

Not Your Grandfather's Crab-Cakes

4th Place

Amy Fossett won both 4th Place and Best Presentation with Crabby Street Tacos.jpeg

Amy Fossett

Crabby Street Tacos

Best Presentation

Amy Fossett won both 4th Place and Best Presentation with Crabby Street Tacos.jpeg

Amy Fossett

Crabby Street Tacos

2020 1st Place Winning Recipe

Crab Wontons

Marge Loyd, Crab Wontons.jpeg

Ingredients:

1 lb of crab meat

½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 stalks of green onion, sliced

1 ½ tsp Old Bay seasoning, or to taste

Salt and pepper

20 wonton wrappers

Marge Loyd

Westover, Maryland

  1. Take shells from crab meat, set aside.

  2. 2. Mix cream cheese with hand mixer, add garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, and green onion, salt and pepper to taste.

  3. Add crab meat.

  4. Spoon about ¾ tbs mixture into each wonton. Wet with water the edges of the wonton. Fold comer to comer and pull up the sides up to match.

  5. Seal really well. Bake at 425°F for 20  minutes or fry them in peanut oil.

  6. I use a small pot with peanut oil, bring temperature up then test one out.

  7. Fry until the edges are golden.

HONEY MUSTARD DIPPING SAUCE

 

½ C mayonnaise

3 ½ tbs mustard

3 tbs pure honey

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Mix well and serve with wontons.

SPICY MUSTARD DIPPING SAUCE

 

½ C mayonnaise

¼ C Chinese hot mustard

1 tbs molasses

Mix well and use for dipping sauce.  Adjust hotness to your liking. 

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. 

  2. Place cream cheese and sour cream in mixing bowl. Blend well. 

  3. Add salt, garlic, old bay and Worcestershire sauce into mixture. Blend until smooth. 

  4. Add chopped green onion (minus some for garnish on the top) and blend well. 

  5. Gently fold crab into mixture trying not to break it apart very much. 

  6. Place Phyllo shells into mini muffin pan. 

  7. Scoop mixture into each shell (about 1 TBSP. into each). 

  8. Top with remaining green onion. 

  9. Bake in oven for about 10 minutes or until lightly brown. 

June Lewis

Denton, Maryland

Appetizer-CrabRangoonBitesJuneLewis.jpg

Ingredients:

8 oz. cream cheese (room temperature) 

½ cup sour cream 

¼ tsp. Minced garlic (I use jar garlic) 

Salt to taste 

Old Bay to taste 

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 

2 green onions 

1 lb. blue crab meat 

30 mini phyllo shells

Crab Wontons

2019 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

2018 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Crab Cake Stuffed Shrimp over a Fried Green Tomato

Ingredients:

1- pound Maryland Blue Crab Meat

12 jumbo shrimp butterflied

 1 clove garlic, finely minced

 ½ cup green bell pepper

 ½ cup red bell pepper 

½ cup green onion, sliced

 ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 1 teaspoon Old Bay

 ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

  ½ teaspoon sea salt

 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted​

 *Fried Green Tomato

 3 green tomatoes sliced

 ½ cup flour

 ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

 ¼ teaspoon onion powder

 2 eggs

 1 cup panko crumbs

 1 tablespoon fresh dill chopped

 Vegetable oil for frying 

Mixed greens

Amy Fossett grand champ cooking 2018.jpg

Amy Fossett

Severn, Maryland

Directions: 

- Sauté the garlic, pepper and onion in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over low heat, just until translucent.

- Remove from heat and allow to cool.

- In a medium bowl, combine the sautéed vegetable with the black pepper, ½ teaspoon Old Bay, cayenne and sea salt.

- Gently fold in the crab meat.

- Form into 12 evenly shaped “cakes”.

- Place butterflied shrimp on a parchment lined sheet pan.

- Drizzle with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining Old Bay.

- Place a “cake” on each shrimp and fold.

- Bake in a preheated 350 degree for 12-15 minutes.

 

For the fried green tomatoes:

- Place flour in a bowl and set aside, in another bowl, mix the panko, garlic powder, onion powder and fresh dill.

- Whisk egg in a small bowl.

- Dredge the tomato slices in flour, dip in egg, shaking excess off and then into panko.

- Fry until light golden brown.

- Repeat with each tomato slice.

- Allow to drain on paper towel.

- To assemble, place a few greens on a plate.

- Add a fried green tomato and top with a crab cake stuffed shrimp

2017 Grand Prize Winning Recipe

Frenchtown Chilled Crab Sprinkle

Directions: 

- Chop fresh parsley.

- Grate onion. 

- Mix together parsley, onion, mayonnaise, curry, and lemon juice. 

- Blend in fresh crab meat. 

- Sprinkle with Old Bay and serve with your choice of crackers. 

(Suggested crackers:  Captain’s Wafers)

Ingredients:

1- pound Maryland Blue Crab Meat

2 T. parsley

1 T. minced onion

3 T. mayo

¼ t curry powder

1 t. lemon juice

Sprinkle of Old Bay

Dawn Lankford

Westover, MD

From Crab Pot to Table Top Cookbook
50 Years of Winning Recipes from the National Hard Crab Derby

$17

Available at the Crisfield Chamber of Commerce Office at
906 W. Main Street, Crisfield, MD

Shipping available - call the office at 410-968-2500.
bottom of page