PHYLLIS!! Go to your room! LOL *blush* Thanks Liz! Sheilajoyce, I thought of rock candy... but I'd have to order it online plus it's really smaller than I'd like. I found one other recipe for the hard candy (which was clear in the photo) but it calls for Vodka... which means I'll have to make sure the kids aren't eating it (it's not for a 'kids' party, but there may be a few kids there). Although... most of the alcohol should burn off at 250 degrees wouldn't you think?

Lou, I have a similar recipe that I use for deviled crab, and I have also substituted canned tuna for the crab with good results as well. It is also baked and then broiled. I'll have to try the salmon recipe, although I really like Marilyn's fresh salmon cakes, and I had no problem with hers falling apart. I'll have to look at her recipe again. I have a feeling now that it was the type of bread I used, as rococogurl suggested. And the recipe does call for fresh bread crumbs as opposed to dried ones. The end result was still very good, even though it was difficult to get them to stick together. I'm considering adding a bit of potato starch to the insides to see if that will make them "stickier". Carol, I had saved your recipe before (it was one of only two that I had saved), but I neglected to look at it before I started. I'll try yours next time, as it looks really more like what I wanted, which is why I saved it in the first place. As for the recipe from the Anapolis native (I saved that one also) - what is regular mustard? My first thought is that it is dried, but it might mean prepared mustard. Crab meat is so cheap right now that I will be making more variations. The first batch of cakes I did not refrigerate, but the second batch had been refrigerated over night, and it had the same problem. I'm pretty sure it is the type of bread, which gave an excellent flavor, BTW. Thanks for all the help! Lars

Since I was not asking a question thought I had better bump it down. Lois

Consider leaving the dark stain or painting. It will be very difficult to sand down the darkly stained wood without blotchiness showing through if you try a lighter stain. Unfortunately paint can peel so stain is usually a better choice.