If you are anything like me, you get overwhelmed when you read the menu at The Cheesecake Factory. Before I go to one, I promise myself that I am going to try something new and not get the same 2 things as usual. But I don’t! I don’t! I end up getting the same darn thing I had the last time. The brain power required to make such a huge decision is more than I care to spend over a lunch! But even with a menu as large at the The Cheesecake Factory’s, there is typically a few items that stand out as fan favorites. Their Stuffed Mushrooms with Wine Sauce is one of those fan favorites.
Stuffed mushrooms on a restaurant menu are nothing new, or innovative for that matter. I’ve had many of them over the years and usually they are dry and uninspired, leaving me wondering why I wasted the calories on it. But these delicious (and vegetarian) large mushroom caps, stuffed with a savory blend of Parmesan & Fontina cheeses, garlic, herbs, Italian breadcrumbs and finished in a sherry wine sauce are not the usual shriveled bites you may have experienced in the past. I believe the biggest difference, and what makes Cheesecake Factory’s so much better, is the sherry wine sauce.
Feel free to use either Button Mushrooms, Baby Bella‘s, or a combination of both. Just make sure they are the largest mushrooms you can find so that the cap is sturdy. And save the stems to chop and incorporate into the stuffing mix. They will not only add texture, but a lot more flavor too! The Cheesecake Factory uses Fontina cheese in their stuffing mix, but Fontina cheese can be a little tricky to find. A decent substitution would be an Asiago cheese, as they are both Italian, cow’s milk, hard cheeses.
Ingredients
- 10-12 large mushrooms, can be Button, Baby Bella or mix
- 1 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- ½ cup Fontina cheese, freshly grated
- ½ cup scallion; finely chopped, green part only
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 4 TBL unsalted butter, divided
- 1 lemon, juiced and divided
- 1 ¼ cup dry sherry wine, divided
- 2 TBL EVOO
- 1 tsp. fresh parsley, finely chopped + some for garnish
- 2 pinches Kosher salt
- 6 cranks cracked black pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium mixing bowl, combine breadcrumbs, cheeses, 1 tsp. parsley, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Using a paper towel or mushroom brush, clean all debris and dirt from the mushrooms. Remove the stem and place the cap upside down in an oven safe casserole dish. Finely chop the mushrooms stems.
In a small saucepan, on med-high heat, add the EVOO and 2 TBL butter. When the butter is melted, add the chopped mushroom stems, scallion and garlic. Sauté for 1 ½-2 minutes. Add the juice of ½ lemon and ¼ cup dry sherry. Sauté this mixture until 60% of the liquid has reduced. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and allow to cool.
In the same saucepan, on med-high heat, add 1 cup of the sherry, the other ½ of lemon juice and 2 TBL butter. Allow this sauce to reduce by half and remove from heat, once reduced.
Combine the cooled sautéed mushroom mixture with the dry crumb cheese mixture. Incorporate well so that the breadcrumb is moistened. Using a 2 oz. melon baller or small scoop, scoop 2 oz. of the mixture. Firmly tamp the mixture into the scoop and release the stuffing mixture onto the top of the mushroom cap. Repeat this process until all mushrooms have been stuffed.
Spoon the reduced wine sauce over the mushrooms in the casserole dish and bake for 8-10 minutes. Once the mushrooms have been removed from the oven, sprinkle with fresh parsley flakes. Allow to cool for 1-2 minutes before serving.
Serve with THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY’S Chicken Madeira and THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY’S Avocado Eggrolls and Enjoy!
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