(That’s quite the name for a dish, isn’t it?) I pride myself on making healthy comfort food. Should “healthy” and “comfort food” be used in the same sentence? Of course they should! In my world, they easily go hand in hand. Warm, gooey mozzarella cheese oozing over the sides of a turkey stuffed portobello mushroom. Sounds like a healthy comfort food recipe…it’ll result in a happy stomach.
I like to use 2 of my signature sauces in this dish, Fresh Summer Tomato Sauce and Spinach Basil Lemon Pesto. If you don’t want to go to the trouble of making both of these homemade sauces, you can easily use your favorite store bought versions.
Portobello mushrooms are a hearty and meaty vegetable. Portobello’s are often used in recipes to replace the meat component all together. (Side note: one of my favorite ways to eat a burger is skipping the meat and choosing a portobello mushroom… I will have to post my favorite portobello mushroom burger soon.) If you want to make this dish vegetarian, do away with the turkey patty and skip the initial 25 minute baking step. The end result will be just as delicious.
The next time you are craving Italian, but don’t want all the carbohydrates from pasta (and the bread, because come on…where there is pasta, there is garlic bread), give these Italian turkey stuffed portobello mushrooms a try!
Ingredients:
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 lb lean ground turkey
- 1 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- 1 cup Fresh Summer Tomato Sauce, or your favorite homemade or store bought marinara sauce
- 2 portobello mushrooms, stems removed and wiped of any dirt
- 1/4 cup Spinach Basil Lemon Pesto, or your favorite homemade or store bought pesto
- 2/3 c part skim mozzarella cheese, grated
- 2 tbsp parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- fresh basil leaves, for finishing
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
First, prepare the turkey mixture. Heat a saute pan over medium heat, add olive oil. Add onion and garlic, and saute for 3-5 minutes until translucent. Be careful not to burn garlic. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and reserve. Place ground turkey in a mixing bowl. Add cooled onion and garlic mixture, breadcrumbs, oregano, salt, and pepper. Mix to combine. Form into 2 patties roughly the size of your portobello mushrooms. Reserve turkey patties.
Add tomato sauce (sauce can be room temperature) to a baking dish. Place portobellos (gill side up) on tomato sauce. Add 2 tbsp of pesto on top of each mushroom and spread to form a thin layer. Add reserved turkey patties on top of pesto. Bake for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven, top each turkey patty with 1/3 c of mozzarella cheese. Return to oven for 10 minutes, then broil for 2 minutes to form a brown crust. Top with 1 tbsp of parmesan cheese per mushroom, and fresh basil.
Serve with extra tomato sauce from baking dish and a nice salad. I chose a simple arugula salad tossed with olive oil, fresh lemon juice, parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.
Enjoy every last bite!
Servings: 2 (Serving size: 1 portobello mushroom) This recipe can easily by doubled to serve 4, or quadrupled to serve 8.
Portabella Mushroom Nutritional Benefits: 1 average size portobello mushroom has 42 calories, 1 gram of fat, only 12 mg of sodium (categorizing it as a low sodium food option), and contains 18 different vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
Emily Always Cooks 