Recipe: Crab stuffed mushrooms

For years and years I've loved Olive Garden's stuffed mushrooms.  We've lived in Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Illinois and no matter what state we've been in or which Olive Garden we've eaten in, the stuffed mushrooms are just, well, yummy.  I've been trying to figure out what makes them so much better than any other stuffed mushroom--every time I eat them I try to identify what makes them so special.  Yeah, that's me; a food detective.  Olive Garden uses clams, but clams can be tough and chewy.  I decided to use crab meat in place of the clams.

Tonight I decided to put all my tasting and cooking skills to the test to see if I could come up with a stuffed mushroom that rivals Olive Gardens--and I honestly think I have!

Here's my version of Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter, melted
16 oz. of large, fresh button mushrooms
2 tablespoons finely minced sweet onions
2 tablespoons finely minced red pepper
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 cup crabmeat (I used claw meat)
1/2 cup fresh, soft bread crumbs and more for topping
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon minced parsley
1/4 cup shredded provalone

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Remove stems from mushrooms and finely chop.  Remove the 'gills' from the inside of the mushroom caps with a spoon and set caps aside.

Gently mix together all ingredients except butter and mushroom caps.  Toss ever so carefully so the crab stays as intact as possible.

Fill the caps and then over-stuff mushrooms.  Do not compress the filling!  Place on foil covered pan (don't crowd) and drizzle with melted butter.  Top with fresh bread crumbs

Bake for 15-20 minutes until brown and bubbly.