To me, there are two iconic scenes in JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH. The first is when the characters travel through a subterranean forest of giant mushrooms. The second is when they witness a deadly ocean battle between a plesiosaur and ichthyosaurus. These scenes jump out to me because they showcase Jules Verne’s exceptional skill as a science fiction writer.
I’m sure he was tempted to populate the center of the earth with plants and animals from his imagination, but instead he chose to take something familiar like a humble mushroom and make it fantastical. This was no accident.
To create an entirely alien ecosystem would have been to forget the premise of the story. This isn’t an alien world; it’s OUR world. It should be grounded in things we know. So Verne took aspects of the real world to wild extremes—giant mushrooms and living dinosaurs—to create a setting that feels otherworldly yet believable.
Inspired by this, I decided to make seafood-stuffed portobello mushrooms for this menu’s side dish. Drawing from recipes by Cafe Delites and My Gourmet Connection, I filled the mushrooms with a mix of crab meat, green onion, garlic, lemon, and cheese (mozzarella and Parmesan). I LOVE the zingy freshness of the lemon—it’s just what’s needed to balance the earthiness of the mushroom. I topped the filling with panko crumbs and toasted them under the broiler for a bit of crunch.
Sooo good! I can’t wait to make these again. 😀
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Crab-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
“But at that moment my attention was drawn to an unexpected sight. At a distance of five hundred paces . . . appeared a high, tufted, dense forest. It was composed of trees of moderate height, formed like umbrellas, with exact geometrical outlines . . . ‘It is only a forest of mushrooms,’ said [Professor Lidenbrock]. And he was right. Imagine the large development attained by these plants . . . here were pale mushrooms, thirty to forty feet high, and crowned with a cap of equal diameter. There they stood in thousands. No light could penetrate between their huge cones, and complete darkness reigned beneath those giants . . .”
— Journey to the Center of the Earth
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 portobello mushroom caps
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 8 oz cooked shredded crab meat (I used canned)
- 1/3 cup finely shredded Parmesan, freshly shredded
- 2 chopped green onions, green and white portions
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 2 Tbsp panko crumbs
Makes 4 crab-stuffed portobello mushrooms
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Gently pull the stems from the mushrooms and use a spoon to scrape the gills from the bottom of the caps. Mince the stems and add these with the gills to a medium bowl. Set aside. Rinse the caps and gently dry. Evenly space the caps upside down on a greased baking sheet and set aside.
- Reserve 3 tablespoons of mozzarella. To the bowl with the mushroom trimmings, add the remaining mozzarella, crab meat, Parmesan, green onion, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Stir until combined. Add the egg and stir again until combined. Evenly divide the filling between the mushroom caps. Sprinkle the tops with reserved mozzarella and panko crumbs.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Finish under the broiler for 1-2 minutes until golden brown on top.
- Serve warm as you travel through a subterranean forest of giant mushrooms.
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Check out my other mushroom recipes!
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