I know what you're thinking: Another crabcake. Well, all crabcakes are not alike. When this dish goes on Commander's menu, more than half our patrons will order it. They probably feel as my mother does: "True jumbo lump crabmeat is the caviar of Louisiana." We want to highlight the crabmeat, not mask it with heavy binders or frying, so this has no bread crumbs and only a small amount of binder. And the cakes are _not_fried, making them incredibly light. As for the accompaniment, crab and corn are a classic Creole combination.
This dish is a great example of how I try to extract the flavor from the jalapeño, not just get the hotness from it. By removing the seeds and membrane from the pepper, and by cutting it into a small dice, the heat is so greatly reduced that I can use twice as much jalapeño and it won't be incredibly hot. You'll just get the good flavor of the pepper.
Remember: The crabmeat is already cooked, so the crabcakes don't need much cooking. We just put a sear or crust on both sides and heat it through just enough to warm. You know that they are ready when you start to see a sear around the ring and they start to bubble a little. And be careful; it's easy to burn your fingers when you're flipping the cakes.
