Crab Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Thanksgiving 2021. Twenty-five people. The cottage is repaired: new screen door (getting its voice), new shingles (Pierre), new window (me). The fig tree survived Ida with some broken branches that Pierre pruned, and Mama says it'll produce next year because "that tree is a Beaumont and Beaumonts don't quit." She's right. The tree is a Beaumont. The tree doesn't quit.

Rémy made a dish for the table this year: crawfish étouffée. His second Thanksgiving contribution, and this time nobody helped. He made the roux (dark, forty-five minutes), the étouffée (crawfish tails from the freezer), and served it in a bowl that Mama put at the center of the table, between the gumbo and the turkey, because a ten-year-old boy's étouffée deserves center placement and Marie-Claire Beaumont decides the table layout and Marie-Claire's decisions are final.

Mama tasted it. The cottage went quiet — twenty-five people, all watching Marie-Claire Beaumont taste her grandson's étouffée. She closed her eyes. She chewed. She opened her eyes. She said, "Très bon." Very good. Not "bon." TRêS bon. The superlative. The upgrade. Twenty-five people erupted. Rémy turned red. I turned redder. Pierre nodded so vigorously his beer sloshed. "Très bon" from Marie-Claire. The boy has arrived. The apprenticeship is complete. The student has been blessed by the master, and the master doesn't use superlatives lightly.

After watching Rémy earn those two words from Mama — très bon — I found myself thinking about what it means to put something handmade in front of people you love and hold your breath. That feeling doesn’t go away when you grow up; if anything it gets bigger. These crab stuffed portobello mushrooms have become my contribution when the family gathers and I need something that holds its own next to a dark roux étouffée — something rich, something from the water, something that says this table is serious. They’re not crawfish, but they carry the same coastal soul, and Mama has never once pushed them to the edge of the table.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 40 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 large portobello mushroom caps, stems removed and gills scraped
8 oz lump crab meat, drained and picked over for shells
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons seasoned breadcrumbs
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Brush both sides of each portobello cap with olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper.
Pre-bake the caps. Place mushrooms gill-side down on the prepared baking sheet and roast for 8–10 minutes to draw out excess moisture. Remove from oven and carefully blot any liquid with paper towels. Turn caps gill-side up.
Make the filling. In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Stir in mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic, Old Bay, and cayenne until well combined. Fold in the crab meat, green onions, half the Parmesan, and all the mozzarella. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Fill the caps. Divide the crab mixture evenly among the four mushroom caps, mounding it slightly in the center.
Top and bake. Mix the remaining Parmesan with the seasoned breadcrumbs and sprinkle over each filled cap. Return to the oven and bake for 14–16 minutes, until the filling is heated through and the tops are golden brown.
Rest and garnish. Let the mushrooms rest for 3 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh parsley and a small wedge of lemon on the side.

Nutrition (per serving)

Crab Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms — Worthy of Marie-Claire’s Table