My Sausage, Sage and Wild Rice stuffing recipe was a big hit with my family over the Thanksgiving holiday. The link to this recipe you will find at the bottom of the page.
If you have your own favorite family stuffing recipe, why not try that if you have an abundance of leftovers like I had make it your own!
If you cannot find giant stuffing mushrooms in your grocery store, then by all means use the largest you can find (or make mini versions.) Initially, there is a little preparation needed for the mushroom caps, as we need to extract some of the moisture before baking them which doesn't take very long. This will ensure that you don't end up with a soggy mushroom appetizer.
Ingredients
10 - 12 large stuffing mushrooms
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups Sausage, sage and wild rice stuffing (my recipe link follows)
2 small cans whole baby clams, drained, roughly chopped and some liquid reserved)
Grated Parmesan cheese (or your favorite)
Method
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
1. Start by wiping the mushrooms with a slightly damp, clean cloth or paper towel. Remove the stems by pulling on them or carefully, use a sharp paring knife to ease it out if it's tight. Chop the mushroom caps finely and cook them for approximately 2 3 minutes with a little olive oil and set aside.
2. In a large skillet and in batches, heat the olive oil over a medium flame and place the mushroom caps upside down. Gently cook these until the top edges start to get some color. Then, flip them over and repeat the process. You will see that the mushrooms will start to release some water. When the bottoms are nicely colored, drain upside down on paper towels. This can be done a day ahead of time and stored upside down in a sealed container lined with absorbent paper.
3. In a large bowl, combine the stuffing, clams and cooked mushroom stems and combine well. If the stuffing mixture is dry (it should be somewhat moist,) add small amounts of the clam broth a little at a time and mix well. Using an ice cream scooper (2 oz. size if using large caps, 1 oz. for small) scoop mounds of the stuffing into the mushrooms.
4. Spray a foil lined, shallow baking/cookie sheet. Sprinkle the stuffing with the Parmesan or your favorite cheese and bake in the middle of the oven until they are heated through and the cheese is golden, approximately 15 - 20 minutes. Serve warm.
