Creole Stuffed Mushrooms

For years I have been making stuffed mushrooms that, until recently, have always been a major hit with everybody. The filling consists of sausage, Parmesan and fennel seed. It was an Italian recipe handed down through generations, and I was fortunate enough to be given the recipe by a friend. The downfall of the recipe, however, is that the mushrooms are stuffed with raw sausage meat, which scares me to death. I’m always afraid that if the sausage is not cooked thoroughly, someone is going to become ill. As a result of this fear, I started “overcooking” the mushrooms, making them tough and inedible. I tried precooking the sausage but that just dried out the filling. No adaptations of the sausage filling even came close to being irresistibly good, until now. Thanks to Marguerite at Cajun Delights, Mike and I have fallen in love with stuffed mushrooms all over again. I’ve been following Marguerite’s blog for some time now, well before I even started my own blog, because I’m a big lover of Cajun cuisine. When I saw these stuffed mushrooms posted, I just knew I had to try them. They sounded perfect; and they were! I slightly adapted the recipe, but that’s only because for my first attempt I didn’t want to stuff 32 ounces of mushrooms, so I tried to halve the ingredients somewhat. These were so beyond awesome, I won’t even hesitate to stuff tons and tons more double the next time, or any time, because I know they won’t last for long. The sausage is precooked, but the other ingredients in the filling replenish the moisture and add layers of flavor. Not one ingredient overpowers another in this recipe; I think that’s what I love most about it….it’s just a perfect “mouthwatering” blend. They actually melt in your mouth.If you’re looking for that perfect holiday party appetizer, you just found it (and so did we)! Thanks, Marguerite for sharing your recipe! I’m now officially retiring my old “go to” recipe, because it doesn’t get any better than this.

Garlic missing from above pic.

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Finely chop bell peppers, onion and garlic. Seed and finely chop jalapeno. (After dicing by hand, I used a mini food processor to chop the veggies a little finer.)

I couldn't find whole baby bella mushrooms at any of our supermarkets, only white mushrooms or cremini. So, I did a little online research. Turns out white mushrooms are the youngest, cremini mushrooms are a little older and baby bella mushrooms are the most mature. Other than the age, the mushrooms are all the same; so we bought the cremini mushrooms. Wash mushrooms, remove stems. I discarded stems, but you could finely dice them, saute them with the veggies and add them to filling, if desired.

We used sweet sausage this time, because we were unsure as to the overall spiciness of these appetizers. But, I think next time, I'll double the recipe and use half sweet and half hot; as the mushrooms were not at all spicy. Remove sausages from the casings.

In large heavy skillet, over medium high heat, brown sausage, stirring often and breaking up meat, until no longer pink. Remove from pan and set aside.

I didn't have any sausage drippings left to saute veggies in, so I added a couple of Tablespoons of olive oil to skillet. Then I added chopped onion, chopped green pepper, chopped red pepper, garlic and jalapeno. Saute over medium heat for 8 minutes.

Remove from heat. 

In medium sized bowl, add sausage, vegetable mixture, breadcrumbs, parsley, cream cheese, cheddar cheese and Creole seasoning. Blend well.

Spoon sausage mixture evenly into mushroom caps and place on baking sheet (prepared by spraying with a little non-stick cooking spray). Sprinkle additional cheddar cheese over top of each mushroom. 
 

Bake for 16 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Serve hot with toothpicks.

CREOLE STUFFED MUSHROOMS
Source: Cajun Delights
Posted by: www.meldingmagic.com

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 packages (8-ounces each) fresh cremini (or baby bella mushrooms), washed, with stems removed
• 3 links sausage, hot or sweet (about 1/2 pound)
• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 of a whole green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4 of a whole red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning
• 4 ounces (1/2 of an 8-ounce package) cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tablespoons seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus additional to sprinkle over top
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

              
DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a baking sheet by spraying lightly with no-stick cooking spray.
2. Brown sausage in a large heavy skillet, stirring often and breaking up as it cooks, until no longer pink.
    Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Add 2 Tablespoons olive oil to skillet. Add onions, peppers, garlic, and jalapeno. Sauté over medium
    heat for 8 minutes.
4. In medium size bowl, combine cooked sausage, cooked vegetables, dried parsley, Creole seasoning,
    cream cheese, breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup cheddar cheese. Using a fork, mix well to combine all
    ingredients thoroughly.
5. Mound sausage mixture evenly into mushroom caps. Place evenly spaced on baking sheet. Sprinkle
    additional cheddar cheese over top of each stuffed mushroom. Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is
    melted.