Few things give me more joy in life than a wonderful, fresh mushroom, stuffed to perfection with a mixture of kielbasa, butter, onion and garlic, topped with parmesan and baked until the cheese is melty and the butter is crispy.
I recently discovered that I love the perfect size cremini mushrooms – not too big, and not too small, but perfect enough to pop in my mouth. It’s like they are just meant to be eaten one after the other, until the whole pan is gone… maybe I’m self admitting here, but these were truly delectable.
These stuffed mushrooms are so easy to make at home, you will find a reason to want to make them every weekend – who knows, it might be just the way to get your kids to eat mushrooms, too!
Cremini mushrooms from your local farmers market make the best stuffed mushrooms – they are no different than portabello with the exception that they are smaller, and their gills are covered with a veil of mushroom skin. If yours don’t have that veil of mushroom skin, they aren’t truly as fresh as they should be.
Cremini and portabello mushrooms are more intensely flavored than their cousin – the white button mushroom, making them a wonderful option for stuffed mushrooms.
These stuffed mushrooms used a combination of butter, cornmeal, diced cornmeal, kielbasa, garlic and jalapeno for the filling. They were topped with parmesan, drizzled with a little extra butter and baked for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
Cremini mushrooms are stuffed with a buttery filling, topped with parmesan and baked to perfection! They are the perfect appetizer!
Ingredients
- 1 lb cremini mushrooms, washed, stems removed and set aside
- 1 jalapeno, diced
- 1/4 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/4 C. organic cornmeal + 2 Tbsp, separated
- 1/4 C. butter, cold
- optional: 1/4 C. pork kielbasa, diced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F, and prepare a baking sheet by lining with parchment paper - set aside.
- Wash and thoroughly dry your cremini mushrooms, then spread out on the parchment lined baking sheet and sprinkle with salt & pepper.
- Combine the jalapeno, onion, garlic, 1/4 C. cornmeal, 1/4 C. butter, and optional kielbasa in your food processor, along with 1/2 of the cremini stems.
- Pulse a few times, until the ingredients are combined - not too much so that they puree. Two or three pulses should be sufficient.
- Stuff the cremini caps with your butter mixture. Sprinkle 1/4 C. parmesan cheese over the stuffed mushroom caps, then sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbsp cornmeal.
- Bake at 400 degrees F. for 15-20 minutes, or until mushrooms have given up their juices.
- If needed, broil for a minute or two to crisp up - as needed.
