Easy Crab (or not) Stuffed Mushrooms

These are by far the easiest stuffed mushrooms I have ever made.

And I've made more than enough to fill...oh, say...the Titanic? Yeah. A lot.

Juicy and tasty, these will satisfy a crowd! A nice and easy appetizer for any type of occasion. You can make them ahead of time and refrigerate these until you need them.

I say "crab (or not)" simply because it's really up to you. You can (or not) use crab, shrimp, surimi, or no seafood at all and they'll still be fantastic.

You could use the stuffing and pile it into a couple of portabello mushroom caps, or use cremini mushrooms instead of button.

Clean your mushroom vessels of choice and pop out the stems.

Chop up those stems - waste not, want not!

Do the same with some scallions.

As well as some red bell pepper.

Melt some butter...

Add the stems, scallions and red pepper and cook down.

Cook until most of the butter as been absorbed and everything is tender.

Put some breadcrumbs in a bowl.

Toss in salt, pepper, cajun seasoning and parmesan cheese.

Add the cooked veggies and some crab meat.

Stir it all up.

Stuff those caps to maximum capacity!

Put 'em on a baking sheet and drizzle each one with a little melted butter.

Top with a smattering of Parmesan.

After 20 loooong minutes, you are finally rewarded...

Crab (or not) Stuffed Mushrooms

Makes about 20-24

1 pound large button mushrooms

6 tablespoons butter, divided

3 green onions, minced

3 tablespoons minced red bell pepper

6 ounces crab meat

1 cup bread crumbs

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon Cajun seasoning blend

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Wash and trim the end of stems from mushrooms. Pop remaining stem out. Chop stems and set aside.

Spray a shallow baking dish or rimmed sheet pan with butter-flavored spray or grease with butter.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in skillet; add reserved chopped stems, minced green onions and red bell pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender.

Combine cooked ingredients with bread crumbs, crab meat, and seasonings.

Fill and pack each mushroom, piling the filling up. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter; drizzle over mushrooms. Sprinkle each mushroom with a little Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

Pinwheel-O-Beef

My Mom makes a similar dish, one with flank steak stuffed with mozzarella, and it is very yummy indeed.  It's quick and easy to make, which appeals to my inner lazy cook in me. You know what I'm talking about, right?  Those nights where you want something tasty, that will fill you up and that has minimal ingredients and effort involved. Yeah, those... I knew you knew what I was referring to.

But today the 'lazy cook' portion of my brain was viciously attacked by the 'can't leave well enough alone so I have to play around with it' portion (which, sadly, is a much larger chunk than any other part of my brain) and...well...I came up with this little beauty:

Pinwheel-O-Beef

2 cloves garlic, minced
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
8 ounces fontina cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup toasted bread crumbs
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 flank steak (about 2 to 2 1/2 pounds), trimmed of excess fat and butterflied
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a medium bowl, combine the garlic, scallions, parsley, fontina, parmesan, and bread crumbs and mix well. Add 1/4 cup of the olive oil and mix well. Set aside.

Open up the butterflied flank steak and arrange it so the grain of the meat is parallel to you, and season exposed side with salt and pepper. Spread the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the beef, leaving a 1/2-inch border along the side furthest from you; press and gently pack the stuffing mixture onto the beef to keep it in place. Starting from the side nearest to you, roll up the meat like a jelly roll, pressing any stuffing that falls out of the ends back into the roll. Place the rolled beef seam side down on a jelly roll pan. Brush the outside of the roll with remaining olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Cook the beef in a 400 degree oven for 40-45 minutes. Let rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.