Brunch'n on Crabcake Benedict

Let them eat Brunch!
Ahhh, brunch. A genius meal that allows you to sleep in and combine breakfast with lunch so you don't feel like you've missed out on anything. Brunch.  The magical place where bacon is a requirement and you can wake up and immediately begin drinking without judgment. Brunch. The only reason to wake up at all on Sunday.  Brunch.  Your chance to gather with your buddies for a "fill-in-the-blanks-from-last-night" meal.  Brunch. The perfect kick-off before kick off on a football Sunday.  Brunch. Where pajamas are acceptable in public and champagne glasses are bottomless. Brunch... is like Christmas at the end of every week. Speaking of Christmas, we have a tradition in my family for Christmas morning.  We call it "Chesapeake Benedict," styled after a brunch staple - eggs benedict (poached egg over English muffin topped with hollandaise sauce) - but in lieu of Canadian bacon we PILE on crab meat dusted with Old Bay seasoning (it's a Maryland thing).  I was feeling brunchy, nostalgic and in need of a little pick me up so I came up with a different version of this holiday classic.  Without further ado, I bring you Crabcake Benedict. Toasted ciabbatta topped with a huge pan-fried bacon-filled crab cake topped with a perfectly poached egg and drenched in a lemony white wine butter cream sauce served with a roasted potato and corn side dish. So here's to brunch, Christmas, crabs (the good kind) and bacon! Cheers!
Prepare yourself:

1. 4 thick slices of bacon
2. 1 ear of corn - kernels removed
3. 4 white potatoes - cubed
4. 1/4 red onion - chopped
5. 1/4 white onion or 1/2 a bunch of scallions - chopped
6. 2 garlic cloves -sliced
7. 1 can of crab meat with juice
8. 2 tbsp. mayonnaise
9. 1 egg for the cakes (this recipe makes 4 large  crab cakes) and 1 for poaching PER PERSON
   
10. 2 tbsp. flour
11. 2 tbsp. butter
12. 1/2 cup heavy cream
13. parsley
14. old bay
15. 1 bread slice or half an English muffin PER PERSON
16. bread crumbs or crackers
17. 2 lemons - juiced
18. 1/2 cup white wine
19.  oil

Bake your bacon strips at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Drain the strips on a paper towel.

Dice up half your bacon and slice the rest.

Wash, dry and cut your potatoes. Add them to your greasy bacon pan and bake, still on 400, until crispy on the edges. This may take 10 - 20 minutes, depending on your cubes and your oven.

Strip your corn, chop your onion and slice your garlic. Mix them together and set aside until the potatoes are ready. Once your potatoes are crispy, add your mixture and bake for another 10 minutes or until the onions are cooked through. Turn the oven off and mix in the bacon slices.

In a saucepan on low heat, build a roux using 1 tbs. flour and 1 tbs. butter. Whisk until a smooth paste.

Add your wine and another tbs. of butter and bring it to a simmer. Now add your cream and bring it to a simmer, whisking occasionally. Once your sauce has thickened, slowly - and I mean SLOWLY - while whisking over very low heat, add your lemon juice a splash at a time.

Bring about 2 inches of water to a boil in a deep pan. Once it reaches a boil, reduce the temperature to low/medium until your water is just bubbling. Not boiling. Not simmering. Just a few bubbles popping up from the bottom here and there. Add a tbs. of white vinegar and stir it around (this helps your egg to clump together more). In a mixing bowl, dump out your crab meat and break up the lumps without pulverizing the little meat nuggets.

Add the mayo, egg, bacon, parsley, lemon juice, old bay and bread crumbs.

Gently combine the mixture.

Scoop out a palm full of your mix and pat the cakes into rounds. Dust a level surface and have your cakes ready. In a cast iron pan, heat a tbs. of oil over medium heat.  Add one crab cake at a time using a spatula, making sure not to crowd the pan (that will screw up everything). Get a nice crispy fry on both sides. They don't take long - just a couple of minutes and enough heat to bind the crab meat together. Let them drain on a paper towel or wire rack.

Drop an egg into your poaching bath. Be careful not to poke and prod the eggs - this is a GENTLE process.  Once the egg whites are cooked and the yolk remains yummy remove the egg from its bath.

Toast or warm 1 piece of bread for each person. Place a spoonful of sauce on the plate then top it with a slice of bread. Then add another spoonful of sauce on top of the bread. This process makes the bread happy.

Now layer on the crab cake. Then the poached egg and now lots of sauce. Why?  Because its awesome, and you know how we feel about awesome sauce around here. 

Sprinkle on the Old Bay seasoning and serve alongside your potato, corn, bacon yumminess mixture.

Dig in while its still hot. Yummm. Break that egg open and enjoy. It's gonna be a good day.