Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

We made these mushrooms last year at our family Thanksgivings and Christmases. We are now always expected to show up, mushrooms in hand. We normally pop them into the oven to cook when we arrive out our destination, but you can travel with them if you can keep them warm.


We can't take credit for the recipe (Thanks, Ina Garten!), but it's too good not to share. You can make the filling the day before and bake them right before you need to serve them.


Here's what you'll need:
16 extra large Baby Portabella mushrooms (regular baby bellas work fine, but if you can find stuffing mushrooms, grab them!)
5 Tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 Tbsp Marsala wine (may substitute medium sherry)
3/4 lb sweet Italian sausage (we actually use a pound, because we like having extra)
3 shallots, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup panko bread crumbs 
5 oz. marscarpone cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
2 1/2 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced
Salt and freshly ground pepper


Start off by preheating your oven to 325 F.


Clean the mushrooms by wiping gently with a damp paper towel. 

Remove stems and chop finely. 

Throw the mushroom caps in a bowl and coat with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the marsala wine. Let them hang out and soak up all that flavor while you make the filling.


Mince up the shallot and garlic.

Heat the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Toss in the sausage and brown completely, about 8-10 minutes. Once browned, add the shallot and garlic and let that cook for a couple minutes to soften them up.

Add the chopped mushroom stems, stir and cook for about 3 more minutes. The mushrooms will start to brown up and shrink in size.

Add in the panko and then marscarpone. Continue to cook until the marscapone gets all melty and delicious.

Remove from heat and stir in  the parsley, Parmesan, and season with salt and pepper to taste. If you're making the filling the day before, this is where you stop and put it in the fridge. Just heat the stuffing through a bit before you put them in the mushrooms.

Fill each mushroom with the sausage mixture, so that it puffs out over the top of the mushroom cap. Place all your stuffed mushrooms into a baking dish - don't worry if they're touching. 


We typically have extra filling (on purpose). We'll follow up with what tasty dish we make with the extra filling.


Bake for approximately 50 minutes, or until the stuffing looks brown and crusty on top. 


Enjoy!