Italian Sausage Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms With Herb Parmesan

At Olive Garden we are passionate about Italian cooking. We are pleased to share with you a collection of our Featured Recipes over the years that you can prepare at home—and share with your friends and family. Link: olivergarden.com

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• prepared stuffing

• 4  large portabella mushrooms, stems & gills removed
• 1  lb Italian sausage
• 1  teaspoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped
• 1  teaspoon fresh basil, chopped
• 1  garlic clove, chopped
• 1  cup garlic-flavored croutons, finely ground
• 1⁄4 cup milk
• 1⁄4 cup parmesan cheese
• 2  eggs
• 2  cups heavy cream (Sauce)
• 2  tablespoons fresh basil, chopped or 2  teaspoons dry basil
• 1⁄4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
•  salt
•  pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. MUSHROOMS.
3. CLEAN top of mushrooms with damp cloth. Place cleaned mushrooms on a sheet tray, stem side down. Bake at 350ºF for 5-8 minutes.
4. REMOVE from oven until ready to stuff, in step 5 below.
5. STUFFING.
6. BROWN sausage in a nonstick skillet, crumbling sausage into small pieces. Once browned, drain fat and transfer to a paper towel to cool.
7. BEAT eggs with milk in a medium bowl, then mix in parsley, basil, garlic, croutons, and Parmesan cheese.
8. ADD cooled sausage and mix well -- mixture should be wet but firm and hold together easily.
9. TOP pre-baked mushroom caps with sausage mixture and bake in 350ºF oven for 15 - 20 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked throughout.
10. SAUCE.
11. HEAT cream in sauce pan and lightly boil until half its original volume, being careful not to scorch. Mix in Parmesan cheese, basil, salt and pepper.
12. SPOON 2 ounces of sauce over top of each mushroom.
13. Garnish with a sprig of fresh Italian parsley or fresh basil and serve.