By Week 478. Year 10. Tommy is 43. A quiet spring week. Work, school, dinner. The ordinary machinery of a family that has been running for 10 years of documented life and longer before that. The food was simple — crawfish bisque — and the simple was enough and the enough was everything.
Made crawfish bisque this week — the kind of food that fills the house with the smell of Louisiana and the knowledge that whoever walks through the door is walking into a home where the stove is on and the food is ready and the welcome is unconditional. The meal was the day. The day was the meal. Both were good. C'est bon, cher.
The bisque was the heart of the week — but after ten years of feeding people I love, I know that one good thing on the stove has a way of calling for another. Cajun Crab Poppers are the bite I reach for when the house already smells like Louisiana and the spirit of the kitchen is generous and unhurried. They carry the same warmth, the same “you’re welcome here” energy as that bisque — just in a form you can pass around the table before the bowls come out.
Cajun Crab Poppers
Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 6 (about 24 poppers)
Ingredients
- 8 oz lump crab meat, drained and picked over
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 24 wonton wrappers
- Cooking spray or neutral oil, for greasing
- Remoulade or hot sauce, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Heat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a 24-cup mini muffin tin with cooking spray.
- Make the filling. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and cayenne. Stir until smooth. Fold in crab meat, pepper jack cheese, green onions, and parsley until evenly combined.
- Form the cups. Press one wonton wrapper into each muffin cup, pressing gently into the bottom and up the sides to create a small shell. Lightly mist the tops with cooking spray.
- Fill the cups. Spoon about 1 heaping teaspoon of the crab filling into each wonton cup, filling just to the top without overfilling.
- Bake. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the wonton edges are golden and crisp and the filling is set and lightly bubbling at the edges.
- Cool briefly and serve. Let the poppers rest in the tin for 2 to 3 minutes before removing. Arrange on a platter and serve warm with remoulade or your favorite hot sauce alongside.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 210 | Protein: 11g | Fat: 11g | Carbs: 18g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 520mg