Pepperoni Stuffed Mushrooms (24) 

Well, sometimes recipes cause not only delectable tastes but also daunting cooking adventures. 

 

Rae Shillman Barnes emailed after she made these tasty morsels, "Yesterday I made your Pepperoni Stuffed Mushroom appetizers to take to a dinner party. They were a hit and were all gone before dinner was served.

However, I have to ask you about how to do those mushrooms so the smoke alarm doesn't go off in the house. Jim was in the shower when it went off and I was running around like a crazy woman trying to get the thing to stop, throwing open all the windows and doors, and pulling the shrooms out of the oven. By the time Jim was out of the shower I was vowing never again to go to a dinner where I had to take food. Of course, once everyone was praising them I had a different attitude again."

Topping

1 slice hearty white sandwich bread

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves  

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil 

Mushrooms

24 large mushrooms , stems removed

¼ cup olive oil 

Stuffing

½ cup sliced pepperoni chopped fine

½ cup shredded Italian cheese blend of Romano and Provolone

4 ounces cream cheese softened

1 tablespoon tomato paste 

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano 

¼ teaspoon black pepper 

For the topping:

Pulse bread in food processor to coarse crumbs. Mix parsley, garlic, and oil in bowl. Stir crumbs into oil mixture to coat. Set aside.

For the stuffing:

Reserve 2 tablespoons chopped pepperoni. Process remaining pepperoni and all other ingredients in food processor until smooth. Transfer to zipper-lock plastic bag until ready to use.

For the mushrooms:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil and set wire rack inside baking sheet.

Toss mushrooms with oil, lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in bowl. Arrange mushrooms gill side up on rack and roast until juices are released, about 20 minutes. Turn caps over and roast until mushrooms are well browned, about 10 minutes.

Remove baking sheet from oven. Flip roasted mushrooms gill side up and cool slightly. Snip off one corner of zipper-lock bag of stuffing, then fill mushrooms. Press each cap (stuffing side down) into bread-crumb topping to coat, sprinkle with reserved pepperoni, and arrange (topping side up) on rack. Bake until filling is hot and

topping is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool about 5 minutes before serving.

Make Ahead:

The mushrooms can be roasted and stuffed up to 3 days in advance, but don't top them with bread crumbs until you're ready to heat and serve the mushrooms. Store stuffed mushrooms, stuffing side up, on a paper towel-lined plate in the refrigerator, covered tightly with plastic wrap. The bread-crumb topping can be refrigerated separately for up to 3 days.