Baked Crab Popper Delights

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 1 cup unseasoned Panko bread crumbs, divided
• 3 small mini red bell peppers
• 3 green onion stems
• 1 cup canned corn
• 16 oz jumbo lump crabmeat, drained
• 3/4 cup Duke’s mayonnaise, divided
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 425°F and spray the cups of a mini-muffin pan with cooking spray.
2. Sprinkle the cups with 1/2 cup of the bread crumbs, gently tapping and rotating to coat.
3. Finely chop the mini red bell peppers and blot them dry with a paper towel.
4. Finely chop the green onion stems, setting aside 1 teaspoon for garnish.
5. In a mixing bowl, combine the canned corn, chopped bell peppers, chopped green onions (excluding the reserved teaspoon), drained crabmeat, half of the mayonnaise, lightly beaten egg, black pepper, and salt.
6. Mix well, being careful not to break up the crabmeat too much.
7. Sprinkle the mixture lightly with the remaining Panko bread crumbs.
8. Divide the mixture evenly among the cups of the mini-muffin pan.
9. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
10. Remove the pan from the oven and let the poppers cool in the pan for 2 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
11. While the poppers are cooling, prepare the lemon-cayenne mayo by combining the lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and remaining mayonnaise in a small bowl.
12. Mix well.
13. Brush the tops of the crab poppers with the lemon-cayenne mayo mixture, then sprinkle them with the reserved finely chopped green onion tops.

Cooking Tips:

For extra flavor, you can add a dash of Old Bay seasoning or seafood seasoning to the crab mixture.
Make sure to blot the bell peppers dry with a paper towel before adding them to the crab mixture to prevent excess moisture.
Serve the crab poppers warm or at room temperature for the best texture and flavor.