Manchego and Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms (Magic Mushrooms)

My new favorite way to get cheese into my mouth. These are gluten free and can be prepared ahead and refrigerated for several hours or even overnight for an easy make ahead appetizer. Happy Weekend Y'all!

Manchego and Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms (Magic Mushrooms)

Ingredients:

3 (8 oz packages) Baby Bella mushrooms

½ pound sweet Italian sausage

Salt and pepper

1 tablespoon of olive oil, plus more for oiling baking dish

½ cup chopped shallots

2  cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (this adds a particularly wonderful flavor but white wine or maybe even cider vinegar would work)

1/4 tspn paprika

Zest of small lemon

2 tablespoons almond flour (seasoned or plain dried breadcrumbs would work also if not gluten free)

¾ cup shredded Manchego cheese, lightly packed

½ cup crème fraiche (sour cream would work too or even Greek yogurt)

Pinch red pepper flakes

1 ½ tablespoons finely minced green onions

Big pinch fresh ground nutmeg

Parsley, additional chopped green onion or cilantro for garnish (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 if making right away.

Clean the mushrooms by rinsing quickly under cold water and patting dry (if you're a purist feel free to hand wipe each one instead - see you in a month.) Carefully remove the stems by pulling firmly and gently from the base where they connect. If the stems are particularly stubborn, you may need to use a small spoon to scrape out the leftover stalk to make room for the filling.

Next chop up enough of the stems (fine dice) to equal half a cup and set aside (you can discard the rest of the stems or save for another use.)

Lightly oil a large casserole dish with olive oil then place the mushroom caps spacing them evenly apart inside, cavity side up. Season very lightly with salt. Set aside.

Next heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up well with a spoon (you don't want super big chunks because you're going to stuff it into fairly small mushrooms.) Once broken up add the half cup of diced stems along with a pinch of salt and pepper and cook until the sausage is cooked through, about 8 minutes.

Remove using a slotted spoon to a holding plate and set aside. Meanwhile add a little olive oil to the pan if necessary and let heat through for 30 seconds. Add the shallots with another small pinch of salt and cook for 4-5 minutes until beginning to turn translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook another 2 minutes or until softened.

Raise the heat slightly and add in the sherry vinegar. You want it to bubble a little and reduce until there's just a scant amount of liquid left in the pan. At this point kill the heat and move the skillet off the hot burner.

Carefully stir back in the sausage/mushroom mixture along with 1/4 teaspoon paprika, lemon zest, almond flour, creme fraiche, red pepper flakes, green onions and nutmeg until well mixed. Taste for seasoning and add pinch more salt/pepper if desired.

Use a small spoon to stuff the prepared mushrooms (I have found that if I pile them high enough I can use up all the filling.) At this point you can let them cool, cover and refrigerate for a few hours or even overnight before baking or bake right away in a 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until the top of the filling just begins to brown and they mushrooms have released their liquid and cooked through.

Cool for 5-10 minutes before garnishing with chopped herb of choice and serving.