Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions

This recipe for Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions was in the Sunday paper. Hope all of you enjoy it!

           Margaret Heinemann                                                   New Hyde Park, New York

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions Recipe

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions

6 Tbsp. butter

2 medium onions, finely chopped

¼ tsp. sugar

1 Lb. large white mushrooms

3 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz. lump crabmeat

1 to 1 ½ plain bread crumbs

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

¼ tsp. salt or more to taste

½ tsp. black pepper

Olive oil

Lemon wedges

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat.  Add the onion and sauté until softened.  Add a ¼ teaspoon of sugar to onions and cook, stirring often, until caramelized.

Wash mushrooms and trim away the hard ends of the stems.  Carefully take the rest of the stems off and chop them finely.

Add the mushrooms stems and minced garlic to caramelized onions and sauté until tender.

In a large bowl, combine the onion mixture, crabmeat, bread crumbs, cheese, eggs, lemon zest and juice, parsley, salt and pepper.  Melt remaining three tablespoons of butter and add to the mix.

Place mushrooms caps into well-greased baking dish.  Fill the caps with the mixture, pressing down to fill each one generously.

Drizzle a bit of olive oil on top of the mushrooms before baking to help brown them.  Bake until browned on top and hot throughout, 35 to 45 minutes.  Serve hot, garnished with lemon wedges.

12 to 24 serve as appetizer / 6 to 8 serve as main course

Tips:  To caramelize the onions, cook them low and slow.  And don’t add the garlic until the onions are just about done, or it will get bitter.  You can stuff the mushrooms in advance and refrigerate them for a day or two.  Don’t ship the olive oil at the end.  It will help brown the mushrooms and keep the filling moist.

 

(Recipe for the Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions was in Sunday, Newsday, January, 2014)