Instructions: (Crab Meat Croquettes, Ybor City Style)

Dough Recipe: The dough must be prepared and refrigerated, preferably overnight. Remove crust from bread; soak in water for 1/2 hour. Drain and squeeze thoroughly. Add paprika and salt. Add the bread crumbs and work to form a dough. Place in refrigerator to chill thoroughly.

Crab Meat Filling: Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Saute the onion and green pepper until transparent. Add the garlic and saute all until soft.

Combine salt, hot sauce, sugar, bay leaf, parsley, tomato sauce and the nutmeg. Add to saute and mi well. Cover and simmer for 1/2 hr (add water if needed during cooking time). Add the crab meat and sherry. Mix well and cook covered another 10 min. Cool and refrigerate.

Preparation of the Croquettes: Remove dough and filling from refrigerator.

Take 2 generous tbsp. Of dough in palm of your left hand. Indent with the back of a spoon in the center enough to fill with a tbsp. Of crab meat filling. Work dough around filling to form a croquette.

Prepare a mixture of 2 eggs, 2 tbsp. Of water, salt and pepper and beat vigorously. In a bowl, combine 1 cup of seasoned bread crumbs with 1/2 cup of all purpose flour. Mix well. Dip croquettes first in the egg mixture, then roll in the crumb flour mixture to coat well. Place croquettes side by side in a shallow dish. Cover with Saran Wrap or foil and refrigerate at least 1 hour before frying in deep fat. (Make sure you have lots of your choice of red pepper sauce available to pour onto them. It makes them even more delicious.)

Yields 2 dozen small, 1 dozen large.

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