Stuffed Mushrooms with Green Olives and Bacon

Well this is fun way to use our bread plate! Since my hubby is getting home late tonight, I thought I should whip up something special so we could start the fun as soon as he comes in the door! I've never made stuffed mushrooms before, but after looking at a couple recipes, I went into the kitchen and whipped these up. It was a cinch! And so fast to make... definitely a good one to keep in mind for a party or when company is coming (or you want to spice up the last few hours in the day!)


Here's my recipe (again, I'm bad about measuring things, so all the amounts are approximate.)

Preheat the oven to 425F

5 large mushrooms
2 large cloves of garlic
4-5 green olives
1 large piece of raw bacon, sliced in small pieces
1 slice of dry bread, crumbled
1/3 cup (more or less) sharp cheddar cheese

The first step is to pop the stems out of the mushrooms. Then dice the mushroom stems, the garlic, and the olives. Saute them in a small saucepan with the chopped bacon and a tablespoon of butter. I let this cook about 5 minutes I think-- till it started smelling really good. The bacon doesn't need to be completely cooked because it will finish in the oven.

Next, stir in the bread crumbs and the cheese. After the cheese is all melted and the ingredients are in a nice gooey ball, take it off the heat, and divide it between the 5 mushroom caps. Arrange in a lightly greased pan (I used a pie pan, but if you're doing more, you could use a cookie sheet) and bake for 7-10 minutes.

In the picture, I used a couple sprigs of cilantro for a garnish. (And if you're wondering why there are only four stuffed mushrooms in the picture.... I had to eat one to make sure they were good enough for a blog post! And oh, they were!)

Enjoy!