Crab stuffed Portobella mushroom cap

Every year my uncle makes a wonderful appetizer for family holidays, it is actually a spin off of something that my grandfather started making.... crab stuffed mushrooms. I decided to take this from an appetizer to main course by increasing the size of the mushroom! Portobello caps make the perfect single serving dinner, you can dress them down with sauce and cheese and make it into a "pizza" or class it up with ingredients like crab. The hearty texture makes it a great substitute for meat, no matter if you are a true vegetarian or just celebrating meatless Mondays. I love mushrooms in just about any form. We are lucky enough to have a great mushroom "farmer" (perhaps cultivator is a better word?) that visits the Union Square Farmer's Market regularly, Bulich Mushroom Farms.


This recipe is quite simple and really no different that many of the crab cakes that I have made before. Since the mushroom cab provides some of the structure I felt that I could leave out the breadcrumbs and make this pure crab-tastic indulgence. I did however make a few "true" crab cakes by adding about 1/2 c of breadcrumbs to the leftovers (I unfortunately only had 2 mushroom caps on hand and the pound of crabmeat quickly dominated them!)


click through for the recipe!



Crab filling for mushroom caps
1/2 lb lump crab meat
1/4 green pepper finely diced
1/2 onion - finely diced
1 egg - beaten
2 tbsp manzanillo mexican spice blend
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp cilantro
2 tbsp parsley
2 portobello mushroom caps
1 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper

1) Mix all of the ingredients (except mushroom caps) together in a large bowl until combined
2) Prep the mushroom cap by using a spoon to remove the dark black gills on the underside
3) Rub both sides of the mushroom cap with the olive oil , season with salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet
4) Place about 1 c of filling rolled into a ball on the mushroom cap and slightly press to fill cap
5) Top with a slice of lemon and place in 350F oven for about 20-25 min
(mushrooms should be softened and crab mix will be browned)
6) Serve with some remoulade sauce (mayo, white wine, french mustard, parsley, salt & pepper)