Stuffed Mushrooms

This weekend I made some appetizers for "Sunday Relax Day" at our house. The hubby wanted me to run out and grab a cracker and cheese platter from the local supermarket.
My first thought, "Good grief, $15 for a stupid cheese platter."

I decided for $15 I would just make my own appetizers. My husband LOVES the stuffed mushrooms from Red Lobster and has been talking about them recently so I decided to give it a try. I also made a healthy version of mozzarella sticks for the kids, but those were not as great.

The mushrooms were much easier than I had expected.

Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil or 1/4 cup melted butter                                                   

24 large white mushrooms

12 ounces flaked crabmeat

4 tablespoons finely chopped onions

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 cup soft breadcrumbs or 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs                     

2 teaspoons parsley, chopped                                           

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon garlic salt

1 egg, beaten

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1/2 cup melted butter

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese 

 

 

Directions

1. Spray a 9x12-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.

Use an additional baking dish if needed.

 

2. Drizzle olive oil or butter in the bottom of the baking dish.

3. Wipe mushrooms with a damp paper towel to clean.

4. Remove stems, set aside caps and chop stems to add to filling.

5. In a medium bowl, mix crabmeat, chopped mushroom stems, onion, dry mustard, 1 cup parmesan cheese, SOFT bread crumbs (fresh bread frozen and then shredded), parsley, red and black pepper, and garlic salt.

6. Mix well and then stir in egg and mayonnaise.

7. Use a small cookie scoop to mound filling onto each mushroom cap.

8. Melt butter and mix in garlic salt and drizzle over the filled mushrooms.

9. Mound a generous portion of the shredded parmesan cheese on top of each filled mushroom. Note: For softer, melted cheese, you may want to use mozzarella cheese or brick cheese for the topping.

10. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 425°F.

11. Best served hot. Can be prepared ahead, refrigerated and then baked just before serving (add 7-10 minutes additional baking time).

 

 

My husband loved them. He said they were not exactly like Red Lobster, but they came in close. I do not like a lot of mushroom flavor, but I did try a bite and they weren't bad. I would recommend these to anyone who enjoys this type of appetizer.

Trust me, if I can then anyone can.