Sausage, Apple & Sage Stuffed Mushrooms

My cousin's baby turned 1 year old last week! She hosted a family birthday celebration over the weekend, the day before (Canadian) Thanksgiving. In honour of the holiday, my cousin wanted to do a fall/Thanksgiving theme cocktail menu. I offered to help out by making a few dishes.

Unfortunately, no pictures yet. The appies were gobbled up before I could snap a photo!

First up - Mushrooms stuffed with... STUFFING! I've always believed that stuffing is the best part of the holidays; or at least the best part of the holiday dinner. Last year I posted my mom's recipe for Moist Bread Sausage Apple Stuffing. It's THE best stuffing EVER and that is no exaggeration. I re-worked the recipe to make it suitable to stuff into large white mushrooms. Topped with a bit of grated Parmesan (because every stuffed mushroom recipe should be topped with cheese), these mushrooms are to die for!

If you want, you could make this into an entrée by using large portabella mushrooms. To get the celery and onion to a fine, minced consistency, I chopped them into smaller pieces, then put them into a food processor.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
1 cup minced celery (about 3 stalks)
1 cup minced onion (about 1 large onion)
1/4 cup fresh sage, chopped fine
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 lb (4 oz, 250g) ground pork sausage (NOT Italian sausage)
2 apples, peeled, cored and minced
1/4 cup apple juice or cider
1 1/2 cups dried bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan, plus
36 large white button mushrooms, washed and de-stemmed

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange mushrooms, tops face up, in a single layer. Roast in oven for 10-15 minutes, while you prepare the stuffing. Remove from oven to cool. Replace parchment with a fresh sheet and arrange mushroom tops down, in a single layer.

2. Melt butter in a large sauté pan. Add onions and celery and cook until onions are translucent and celery tender. Add seasonings and mix well. Remove from heat and pour into a large mixing bow.

3. In the same sauté pan, cook sausage and apple with apple juice until sausage cooked through and apples are soft. Add mixture to the bowl of onion and celery.

4. Once vegetable mixture has cooled slightly, add bread crumbs and Parmesan to the bowl. Toss everything to mix well.

5. Scoop mixture into each mushroom cap. Sprinkle with a bit of Parmesan cheese. Bake in pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes until tops are browned. Serve immediately.