
Stuffed mushrooms. This is an easy, insanely delicious hors d'oeuvre you should serve at your next gathering. We always make these for a Thanksgiving appetizer and they do not last long. It's my mom's recipe and she usually makes them a day before the festivities. Like the make-ahead items from my Thanksgiving Series, these stuffed mushrooms with sausage, panko and a pinch of cheddar can be made ahead and cooked the day you are serving.
Stuffed Mushrooms with Sausage: The Perfect Finger Food
We all have staples in our homes. Things we always have on hand. There are the basics like flour, sugar, butter, coffee, milk and the like. Other staples for me include Italian sausage, panko, parsley and cheddar cheese. I don't normally have mushrooms on hand so it's usually the only thing I need to purchase to make this recipe. It's a low-cost, easy recipe that tastes so amazing and I highly recommend you give this one a try.



Like my mother's potatoes au gratin that has caused fights at Easter, this stuffed mushroom appetizer is in high demand. As the chef, don't forget to set aside a few for yourself because once that platter goes out to your guests - they're gone!
Looking for More Finger Foods? I Gotcha Covered!
- Brown Sugar Bacon Sticks Brushed w/ Maple Syrup
- Holiday Appetizers: Phyllo Cups FIVE ways
- Apple Brie Crostini w/Toasted Pecans and Drizzled Honey
- Warm Shrimp & Gorgonzola Dip
- Crispy Thai Pork Toast
- Nana's Weird Hot Dog Appetizer (great for kids...and adults)
- Honey Butter Bourbon Shrimp
- Cute Little Mac & Cheese Mini Muffins

Stuffed Mushrooms with Sausage, Panko & Cheddar
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 15-18 stuffed mushrooms 1x
Description
Easy-to-make stuffed mushrooms with sausage will be the hit of your next gathering. This is my mom’s tried and true Thanksgiving appetizer recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 6-ounce package of baby brown pearl or baby bella mushrooms (see note #1)
- ¼ pound of ground sweet Italian sausage (approx. 3 sausages with casings removed)
- ⅓ cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1 small clove of garlic, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon of mushroom insides (the stuff you spoon out)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2-3 tablespoons shredded orange cheddar
- 1 teaspoon or so of parsley, finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Wash the mushrooms then pat them dry with paper towel. I wipe them a bit too.
- Pull the stems off the mushrooms. Most will just pop right off, but some you will need to dig a little.
- After all stems are removed, use a spoon to scoop out the mushroom from the cap. We’ll use some of these mushroom bits so set them aside.
- Once the caps have been scooped out, spread your mushrooms caps out on a small sheet pan lined with parchment paper if you have it.
- Finely chop about one tablespoon of the mushroom cap bits.
- Finely dice the garlic.
- Finely dice the onion.
- If you’re using the optional parsley, finely chop it now.
- Get two pans ready on your stove top. Heat on low to medium. Melt butter in one. Heat olive oil in the other.
- In the pan with olive oil, add your diced onion. Cook for a minute or two and stir.
- In the pan with butter add the mushroom bits from the caps. Cook for a minute or two then add the panko bread crumbs.
- In the pan with the onions, add the garlic and stir for a minute until fragrant then add the ground Italian sausage. Break up the sausage with your spatula so the pieces are as small as possible. Stir sausage around and continue chopping for about 5-7 minutes until sausage is cooked all the way through.
- Once the bread crumbs are golden brown, add a pinch of the chopped parsley if you’re using it.
- When the sausage have finished cooking, add the panko crumbs and mix everything together until well combined.
- Take 2-3 pinches (about 2-3 tablespoons of the shredded cheddar) and sprinkle on top of the sausage mixture. Stir together until cheese is melted.
- Time to stuff the mushrooms. Spoon the sausage mixture into the mushroom caps. They’re all different sizes so just fit what you can in each cap. Once they’re filled, I fussed with mine a little and made sure there was a bit of bread crumbs on the top of each.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. My oven runs hot so yours might be different.
- Transfer to a serving plate or platter and garnish with the rest of the parsley if you’re using it.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- For the mushrooms, I used baby brown pearl. You can also use baby bellas. I like this appetizer to be bite-sized so I go with a smaller mushroom. Some mushrooms in your package might be broken or too small to use. I got about 18 total.
- For the ground Italian sausage. If you don’t want to buy a package of ground Italian sausage, simply remove the casings from about 3 Italian sausages and remove the meat. If you bought a package simply freeze it and use another time.
Leave a Comment