Sausage and Thyme Stuffed Mushrooms

Sausage and Thyme Stuffed Mushrooms

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Recipe by: Very slightly adapted from Pioneer Woman
Yield: 6 servings

This recipe is very slightly adapted from Pioneer Woman’s stuffed mushroom recipe, and features an incredible filling of mushroom, onions, sausage, cream cheese, white wine, and thyme. Mike and I eat the whole batch by ourselves as a main course some nights for dinner.

Ingredients:
24 ounces white button mushrooms
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 pound hot pork sausage
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup dry white wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc)
salt and pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with aluminum foil. Clean the mushrooms and cut their stems out, finely chopping and reserving the stems. Place the hollowed out mushroom caps on a foil-lined baking sheet. Combine the softened cream cheese and egg yolk in a large bowl. Add in the grated parmesan and thyme.

In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the sausage. When it’s browned, remove it with a slotted spoon to the bowl with the cream cheese mixture. Let it sit and melt the cheese while you cook the onions until softened in the remaining sausage drippings, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds before adding in white wine to deglaze the pan. Cook until the liquid is gone, about 2 minutes. Add in the mushroom stems and cook until they’re tender, about 2 minutes. Spoon the mixture into the cream cheese bowl and mix it all together. Salt and pepper this mixture to taste. Pile each mushroom cap high with the cream cheese mixture. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until firm. Let the mushrooms cool a few minutes, serving warm.

Hot Sausage & Tomatoes Over Fried Polenta

Hot Sausage & Tomatoes Over Fried Polenta

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Recipe by: Adapted from Cooking Light
Yield: 4 servings

This recipe only takes about 25 minutes to prepare, but it packs a LOT of flavor! Mike and I loved it and are sticking it in our regular dinner rotation.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 links Italian chicken sausage
1 link hot Italian sausage
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
3 heaping tablespoons sundried tomatoes in oil
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil, divided
1 tube cooked polenta (I used mushroom & onion polenta)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Directions:
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Brown the sausage (cutting it out of its casing, if it has one, and crumbling it in the pan). Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes until tender. Add the garlic and cook for just 30 seconds or so, until fragrant but not burnt, before adding the tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, sundried tomatoes, and wine. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the sausage bits off the bottom of the pan. Bring this mixture to a boil before reducing the heat and allowing it to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the mixture is simmering, heat the other 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot and the oil is shimmering, add the slices of polenta, frying them for a few minutes on one side (until golden brown). Sprinkle them with salt and pepper before flipping them to fry, salt, and pepper the other side. When they’re almost done, sprinkle them with a little Parmesan cheese. Remove them to your serving plate.

Stir 1/4 cup of basil and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese into the tomato mixture. Cook for 5 more minutes before spooning the mixture over the fried polenta, sprinkling with a little extra grated Parmesan and basil, and serving.

Sausage & Corn Chile Con Queso Taco Ring

Sausage & Corn Chile Con Queso Taco Ring

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Recipe by: Willow Bird Baking
Yield: 5-6 portions

Forget your usual tacos and even your usual taco rings: this taco ring is an explosion of hot sausage con queso with green chiles. It’s gonna blow your mind! And it’s so easy to make.

Ingredients:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
2 tablespoons salsa of your choice
1 tablespoon diced green chiles
1 pound hot sausage
olive oil (if needed)
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
2 cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and cover a round pizza pan with foil sprayed with cooking spray (or use a pizza stone or baking sheet). Place cream cheese, cheese, salsa, and chiles in a large bowl and set aside.

In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown the sausage. Remove the meat to a paper-towel lined plate to drain, reserving the grease in the skillet. As soon as sausage has drained for a minute, pour it into the cream cheese bowl. Set this aside to allow the cheeses to melt.

In the meantime, pour corn kernels into the skillet over medium heat (adding a little olive oil if there’s not enough grease) and cook 5-6 minutes or until heated through. Stir in 2 teaspoons of taco seasoning towards the end of cooking. Pour the hot corn over the cream cheese and sausage mixture. Stir together until well combined (it’ll take a bit, but it’ll come together).

Carefully unroll packages of crescent rolls, separating them into long triangles. Place triangles, points out, in a sun-like ring (allowing bases of the triangles to overlap). Press down on the overlapping bases to flatten the center of the ring to a consistent thickness. (If you’d like to see a video of these steps, I loved this one). Spoon sausage mixture all around the ring (you’ll need to really pile it high) and then tuck the points up and over the mixture. Bake until golden brown (let it get really golden to avoid doughiness), around 15 minutes. During the last few minutes of cooking, top it with cheddar cheese. Serve with salsa, cilantro, sour cream, chips, and guacamole.

If you want a winning weeknight dinner the family will enjoy, use Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. Get more recipes at http://www.Pillsbury.com.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by General Mills via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are all mine, however, and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of General Mills.