Stuffed Mushrooms…from Leftovers!–Printable Version

To view the full post of this recipe with photos and additional information, click here.

Stuffed Mushrooms…from Leftovers!

Ingredients:

-24-ounce package jumbo white mushrooms (whole)

-3 tablespoons oil (any variety)

-1 celery rib or 2 green onions

-1/2 lb. bulk pork sausage (or other meat/TVP)

-1 to 1-1/2 cups leftover cornbread stuffing

-1 tsp garlic powder

-nonstick cooking spray

-1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)

Directions:

Wash the mushrooms well and pat them dry. With a sharp knife, remove the stems from the caps, hollowing out as much of the cap as possible.

In a large skillet, heat about 3 tablespoons of oil (any kind) over medium burner heat. Add the mushroom caps, hollow-side-down and move them around with a wooden spoon until they begin to turn golden underneath. Flip the caps onto their tops and continue to cook until entire mushrooms look partially sauteed. Remove from heat one-by-one and place on a paper towel to soak up excess oil.

While mushroom caps are cooling (there should be little to no oil left in the skillet by now), chop a celery rib or a couple of green onions into very fine pieces. Add 1/2 lb. bulk pork sausage to skillet and use your wooden spoon to break up meat into very small tidbits. You can also substitute texturized vegetable protein (TVP) for the meat, or use leftovers like breakfast sausage, ground beef, crumbled bacon, etc. instead of the bulk pork sausage.

Allow the sausage to cook about 2/3 of the way done before adding your leftover poultry stuffing. Incorporate the stuffing into the sausage in the skillet, sprinkle with garlic powder, and allow sausage to continue cooking until no longer pink anywhere. Remove skillet mixture from heat and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, spray a glass 9″x13″ baking dish with nonstick cooking oil and place mushroom caps upside-down in baking dish. Spoon stuffing mixture into mounds inside the hollow caps. Once all caps are filled, sprinkle about 1 cup mozzarella cheese over the mushrooms. Bake uncovered at 375 for approximately 12-15 minutes, or until cheese is uniformly melted.

Serve immediately or refrigerate leftovers. Be sure to separate each mushroom from its “neighbors” cleanly before refrigerating–it will be much harder to do that after they’ve camped out in the fridge or been reheated!