Spicy Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

Stuffed mushrooms are so very 90s, but they have been around much longer than that.  Italian restaurants began serving them as a delicacy as early as the beginning of the 20^th century. They probably evolved from the Italian tradition of stuffing zucchini blossoms, a tradition which strangely hasn’t taken hold.  Eventually everyone and his brother was serving them.  And just like everything that becomes popular, stuffed mushrooms have become passé.

But just because something is no longer cool, doesn’t mean it isn’t still wonderful.  I like stuffed mushrooms.  They taste good, they look pretty, they actually are finger food, and they can be started early and finished up later.  Usually stuffed with cheese and breadcrumbs, mushrooms can be stuffed with anything.  I love them stuffed with spicy Italian sausage.  One day, I’ll prepare mushrooms stuffed with crab, but for now-enjoy.

Servings:  24 mushrooms

Hardware: Measuring spoons and cups, knives and a cutting board, a slotted spoon, a large spoon, 2 bowls, a mixing bowl, a gallon plastic bag, a food processor/chopper, a skillet, a baking sheet
Time: Prep-15 minutes, Cook-45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon + more olive oil
• 24 stuffing mushroom caps
• ¾ pound spicy Italian sausage
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion
• 4 baby bells or ½ a large bell pepper
• 1 small carrot
• ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
• ¼ + 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
• Salt & Pepper

Spicy Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

1. Preheat oven to 350˚.
2. Clean the mushrooms.  Remove the stems.  Use the large spoon to remove the mushrooms’ gills to make more space for stuffing. Set the caps aside. Heat the skillet over medium high. Add just enough oil to cover the bottom. Add the mushroom stems and gills. Sauté them until they are lightly browned (5-7 minutes).  Put the browned stems in the small bowl and set aside.
3. Wipe out the skillet and add just enough oil to cover the bottom again.  Remove the sausage from its casing and cook until it is browned (7-10 minutes).  Use the slotted spoon to remove the sausage from the pan.  Set the pan aside but do not clean.
4. Add the onion, stemmed and seeded peppers, cooked mushrooms, and garlic to the food processor.  Pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Return the skillet to medium high heat and sauté the veggie mixture for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt & pepper.
5. Put the sausage in the food processor and pulse until it is the same consistency as the veggies.
6. Mix the veggies, sausage, bread crumbs and ¼ cup of the Parmesan cheese together.
7. Place the mushroom caps, a pinch of salt, and a tablespoon or so of olive oil in the plastic bag.  GENTLY toss the mushrooms so that they are completely covered in oil.
8. Use the large spoon to stuff the mushroom caps. You can really pack the stuffing down and allow it to heap up on top of the caps.  (At this point you can cover the mushrooms in plastic wrap, place them in the fridge, and finish up later.)
9. Place each stuffed mushroom onto the baking sheet.
10. Sprinkle the remaining cheese onto the stuffed caps. Bake for 30 minutes or until the stuffing is set and the caps are beginning to shrink.

Serve warm.