New Year's Stuffed Mushrooms

Alas, I have returned. Smarmy politics and the bitter cold wind off the lake once again blew my desires for a vegetable bed and wee chickens to raise and slaughter back to the dreamworld in which they reside.

While visiting that California dreamworld I was asked to bring food to a New Year’s Eve party with, you guessed it, a load of vegans. Not one for preparing faux-meat, I turned elsewhere and came across a recipe for stuffed mushrooms which resulted in a noble nibbly veg.

I enjoy a lot of versatility in food especially when it comes to appetizers, which I often find myself needing to whip up last minute. The beauty of the mushroom is that you can take its stuffing down the road of breadcrumbs, orzo, ground meat, or in this case roasted and briny vegetables.

2 med. red bell peppers, roasted
1 long red chile pepper, roasted
1/2 cup green olives, finely diced
2 shallots, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbs. olive oil + 1 tbs. reserved
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano and/or Gruyere, grated (omit for vegans)
about 15 Cremini mushrooms
bunch of parsley for garnish

Preheat the oven to 400F degrees

To roast the bell and chile peppers, puncture all over, then with tongs or a long fork hold over an open flame (e.g. your burner) until thoroughly charred and blistered. Place both peppers in a bowl and cover tightly for about ten minutes, until they steam their own insides and the skin peels easily off. Remove seeds as they can be hot or bitter depending on the size of the pepper.

Finely dice the capsicums and add them to the diced olives, shallots, and garlic. Toss together with oil, salt and pepper to taste, and cheese. Pop the stems out of clean mushrooms and fill the cavities generously with stuffing. Place the mushrooms on a cookie sheet lined with foil and in the oven they go! Bake for about 20 minutes until the mushrooms are golden and the cheese is melted.

Sprinkle the tops with parsley and enjoy!