posted by peggy 05-28-98 5:13 PM
DUNGENESS CRAB AND BASIL STUFFED MUSHROOMS
3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (about 3/4 pound)
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 green onions, roots trimmed, and thinly sliced
2 teaspoons finely chopped, fresh basil (about 24 medium-sized leaves)
12 drops Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons dry white wine
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 small clove garlic, crushed
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 pound fresh Dungeness crab meat (body and leg meat)
48 medium-sized mushrooms
cooking oil
Preheat the oven to 400°.
In a medium bowl, combine the cheese, bread crumbs, salt, green onions
and basil.
In a separate, smaller bowl, combine the Tabasco sauce, wine, lemon
juice, garlic and egg and add to the bread crumb mixture.
Without breaking up the crab too much, add the crab meat to the bread
crumb mixture and mix until well-blended. Refrigerate for at least an
hour, or overnight.
Wipe the mushrooms with a clean, damp towel to remove any dirt and \
carefully pop mushroom stems out of the caps.
(Reserve the stems for soups or salads.)
Wet your hands with cold water and take a small handful of stuffing in
your palm and mold into a round ball.
Place the stuffing firmly inside a mushroom cap, being careful not to
break the mushroom.
Place the stuffed mushroom on an oiled cookie sheet.
Repeat until all the mushrooms are filled, placing them on the cookie
sheet without touching each other.
(At this point, the mushrooms can be refrigerated.) Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the stuffing is lightly browned. Serve immediately on a warmed platter or chafing dish.
Makes 40-48 stuffed mushrooms.