Need Great Ideas For A Quick Florida Lunch At Home?

If you are ever struggling to figure out authentic Florida lunch ideas for entertaining friends or family we have a winning menu for you! This is a 30 minute meal with about 20 minutes of prep time.

We decided to have a “dining” at home experience while Kylie was here on business. A mother daughter date of sorts!

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But what to choose? We needed some Florida lunch ideas that were fresh and new that we had not made before. In our travels we love to share and try new dishes so after chatting via text and thanks to Google we came up with the big picture and we each came up with a dish!

Are You A Foodie Too?

We are foodies first and foremost and love to try new places, spaces and dishes. However, we also really enjoy eating at home in our kitchen around the island with friends and family.

PS…if you are a foodie like us check out “Homegating Is The New Tailgating” blog post that has some great appy and lunch ideas ideas for football season!

Since we live in South Florida and we “love” seafood and especially shellfish we thought you might enjoy this easy to make (anytime of the year) meal for a lite lunch or dinner.

For Starters

To kick off our delicious lunch Halle Alessia made a marvelous charcuterie board that was perfectly put together with cheese, meats and olives. It looked sooo pretty we didn’t want to touch it … but we did and enjoyed it immensely.

What’s On The Menu

We paired the crab cakes with an amazing hearts of palm salad and refreshing #SoooBoca spritz of sorts with Ketel One Botanical Vodka and fresh citrus coupled with a splash of champagne.

We chose a recipe that emulates the lumb crab cakes from the iconic Joe’s Stonecrab in Miami. Now we adore stone crab especially when it is in season, from October 15th – May 15th, but for now…we thought an amazing crab cake lunch would be perfect for this girls luncheon.

Now just to be fair…we also adore garlic crabs and The Rustic Inn in Fort Lauderdale is the best game in town for that so check them out as well!

Recipes

Crab Cakes
Joe’s Stone Crab Restaurant Recipe

1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup chopped onion
4 scallions, trimmed and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 garlic clove, minced
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
3/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more if needed
lime or lemon wedges, for garnish

In a large mixing bowl, combine the crabmeat, red pepper, onion, scallions, parsley, and garlic. In a small bowl, stir together the egg, mustard, lemon juice, Worcestershire, and Tabasco. Gently fold this mixture into the crab meat mixture; then add 1/4 cup of the bread crumbs, mixing with a light touch just until combined.

Form 8 patties, using 1/2 cup of the crab meat mixture for each. The patties should be made in ovals about 1/2 inch thick and 3 1/2 inches long. Coat the patties with the remaining bread crumbs and place them on a wax paper-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until set, at least 1 hour.

Heat the oil in a large skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium heat. Add 4 of the crab cakes at a time. Cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Adjust the heat as you cook so that the fat maintains a steady, gentle sizzle. Gently flip the crab cakes with a spatula and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with lime or lemon wedges, with a small cup of salsa on the side, if you like. Makes 8 crab cakes. – This “copy cat” recipe is from http://seafoodchainrestaurantrecipes.blogspot.com/2016/05/joes-stone-crab-crab-cakes.html

Hearts of Palm Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Prep all of the items in the recipe and chill for an hour in the fridge

1 14 ounce can of hearts of palm, sliced

2 papayas, peeled and cubed (we used mango)

2 kiwis, peeled and cubed

2 bananas, sliced

1 fresh pineapple, cubed or canned is fine (we did not use due to a food allergy)

1 6 oz box of dates, chopped

Lettuce (we added a fresh lettuce to this recipe)

Combine the fruits and lettuce into a pretty glass bowl, mix and serve.

The salad recipe is from Tropic Cooking by Joyce LaFray Young. This is the most fabulous cook book that has amazing cuisine from Florida and the Islands of the Caribbean! Grab this amazing addition to your kitchen!

We hope you enjoy our lunch ideas, cooking video and conversation and lets us know if you try any of the recipes! Make sure to follow at #SoooBoca on Instagram!

Michele is a South Florida Realtor, based in Boca Raton, Florida, serving surrounding cities, and the founder of #Soooboca Lifestyle and Media. If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Boca Raton and any of the surrounding cities let her help you out! Michele blogs, vlogs, posts and shares all things Boca Raton, South Florida & Beyond from events, people, food, travel, home decor, fashion, beauty and real estate! You can find more at www.soooboca.com and on all the socials @soooboca.