KATHEATS.COM
Stuffed vegetables are a fresh choice for football finger food, but looks can be deceiving. Cow-based creamy fillings are loaded with calories, so registered dietician Kath Younger, who blogs at Kath Eats Real Food, uses goat cheese to cut down on calories and fat. Goat cheese and mushrooms are also good sources of selenium, a trace mineral that combines with proteins to fight free radical damage to cells that can cause disease.
Recipe: Lemon Almond and Smoked Bacon Stuffed Mushrooms
Yield: 24 mushrooms
Ingredients
2 pints cremini mushrooms
2 tbsp olive oil
Lemon almond honey stuffing:
4 oz log goat cheese
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon honey
2 tablespoon chopped almonds
Zest of half a lemon
Juice of half a lemon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 grinds around black pepper
Smoked bacon and sage stuffing:
4 ounce log goat cheese
2 slices bacon
1 tablespoon fresh sage
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 grinds black pepper
Allow goat cheese to soften, either on your countertop or for a few seconds in the microwave. Place each log into two separate bowls. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rinse and dry mushrooms and line them in a pan. Drizzle on 2 tbsp olive oil and rub thoroughly to coat.
Lemon Almond Honey: Chop almonds and rosemary. Zest and juice lemon. Combine all ingredients into bowl with goat cheese and mix thoroughly with a fork to combine. Stuff into half of the mushrooms.
Smoked Bacon and Sage: Chop bacon into small pieces and pan-fry in a skillet until brown. Remove and drain on paper towel. Add sage to bacon grease and cook for 2-3 minutes, until sage begins to crisp. Drain with bacon. Combine all ingredients into bowl with goat cheese and mix thoroughly with a fork to combine.Stuff into half of the mushrooms. Bake mushrooms at for 30 minutes. Serve warm.