Based on a recipe from Chef Sheila Polingga of Jordan's Inn on The Twenty
12 medium-sized cremini mushrooms
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Prepare mushrooms by wiping off unwanted residue. Snap off stems and scoop some meat out to create a bit more room for the filling. Do this with a small, sharp-edged spoon and cradle the mushroom in your hand to avoid accidentally breaking off parts / the sides of the mushroom.
Keep all the trimmings. You can do this ahead of time. (See Tips.)
Brush the mushroom caps all over with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Set aside on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Creating room for the filling...
4 TB butter
1 TB extra virgin olive oil
3 stalks scallions, chopped finely
mushroom stems and trims
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup sherry
2 TB chopped parsley
pinch of paprika
1/4 cup shredded Gruyère cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
splash of heavy cream.
Finely chopped scallions; stuffing ready to use
This is no time for "rustic". Stuffing small mushrooms is easier when the stuffing is more fine as in photo.
Chop up the stems and trims from above. (I tossed them into the food processor for 2-3 pulses only and achieved a suitably fine mixture.)
Melt butter with oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the scallions until soft. Add the mushrooms and breadcrumbs and continue sauté until lightly browned. Add the sherry and let boil until the liquid boils down . This will all happen within about 10 minutes.
Remove from heat and let cool. Then add parsley, paprika, and cheeses (reserve some Parmesan). A tablespoon or so of heavy cream may need to be added if the stuffing seems too dry. (I did not find the need to add cream.) Taste, and carefully season with salt and pepper . (If using seasoned breadcrumbs, additional seasoning may not be necessary.)
Spoon the stuffing mixture into the prepared mushroom caps, sprinkle remaining Parmesan on top. Drizzle with some olive oil (optional). Bake in oven pre-heated to 350 F until golden brown about 20 to 25 minutes. Could take less time if using convection oven feature. I love the resulting mahogany colour. As described in Blog post - can be served many ways - or as I did - with greens (dressed with a bit of maple syrup) and balsamic reduction.
Notes and Tips...
- Mushrooms - unless it's part of your plan to have mushrooms of varying sizes, pick mushrooms that are similar in size - creminis that are about 1.5 " across are ideal
- Mushroom Prep - day before - part of this can be done in advance; for example, I cleaned and hollowed out the mushrooms the day before and stored them in a closed container on paper towels.
- Mushroom Prep - day of - Brushing with oil and seasoning can be done a couple of hours before baking. The stuffed mushrooms can even be left at room temperature in the hour before the final step. The cooked mushrooms are ideally served shortly after being removed from the oven.
- Stuffing - this step will be easier and quicker if some/all of the ingredients are prepped - chop, grate, measure out ingredients
- Bread Crumbs - this refers to dry breadcrumbs; while Panko crumbs are favoured for some dishes, in this case regular crumbs might produce a nicer texture / appearance - but try Panko - who knows it may be even better! Local bakeries tend to turn some of their dry bread into bread crumbs - these are likely to be fresher than brand name crumbs in a grocery store. I used seasoned breadcrumbs from a local bakery.
- Leftovers (if any) - best warmed in oven, or under broiler - not microwaved
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