One of the things that entertains me the most about dating Brendan is his ridiculous appetite. The boy can EAT. He’s the best taste tester ever, and I don’t think he’s ever met a meal he didn’t like. As a Colorado guy, he’s used to more meat-based meals, but sometimes I’ll make something totally vegetarian, and healthy too, and I swear he doesn’t even miss a beat. These portabellos have a pretty meaty flavor, anyway, so maybe that was the middle ground? I added some sausage just for a little more substance and flavor, but you can leave this out if you want.
PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS STUFFED WITH BULGAR, SAUSAGE & FETA (makes 4)
– 4 Portobello mushrooms, cleaned and stemmed
– 3 sausage links, uncooked
– 3 scallions, chopped
– 1/3 c. crumbled feta
– juice of 1 lemon
– 1/4 C. EVOO
– Italian herbs
– 1 cup bulgar
– 2 cups water
– 1 tbsp. EVOO
– 1 tbsp. butter
1. Clean the mushrooms, scrape out the “gills”. Take off the stems and set aside (don’t throw these away).
2. In a bag, marinate the mushrooms with the lemon juice, 1/4 c. EVOO & the Italian herbs for at least an hour.
3. Boil 2 cups of water. Place 1 cup of dry bulgar in a bowl, add the 2 cups boiling water, cover. Let this steam for about 30 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 375.
5. While the bulgar is steaming, cook the sausage – take the meat out of the casings and cook this over medium heat, breaking up pieces with a wooden spoon, until it starts to brown. If you’re not using sausage, melt 1 tbsp. EVOO & 1 tbsp. butter over medium heat.
6. Chop the mushroom stems into pieces. Add to the sausage, and cook, or cook by themselves in the butter/EVOO mixture.
7. Cook the mushrooms on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes, just to get them a little soft.
8. In a bowl, combine the cooked bulgar – if all the water hasn’t absorbed, drain it in a colander – the feta, the sausage, chopped mushrooms & scallions. Squeeze some lemon over everything and combine.
9. Stuff mushrooms with this mixture, then return them to the oven.
10. Cook about 5 minutes to warm everything through, then serve and enjoy. We had this with parmesan-roasted cauliflower with thyme – this was a great dinner and an awesome lunch the next day, too.
