By the grace of God himself, Dayne has managed to stick with his diet and is nearly halfway to his goal weight! I didn’t doubt his motivation in the slightest, it was my cooking that was a concern. Our new tradition includes cooking together on Friday evenings, whether it be “healthy” or cheat day. Today at about 1PM he texted me with a very specific request: stuffed mushrooms. Of course I delivered and we had a cheat treat to celebrate!

Ingredients:

• 16 oz. baby bella mushrooms, stems and innards removed
• 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg
• 1/4 c. Panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 c. shredded Italian cheese
• 8 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
• 2 green onions stalks, chopped
• parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*.
2. Use a small spoon to remove the stems and innards of each mushroom. Do not rinse the mushrooms, just wipe off with paper towel. Place the mushrooms in a medium-sized casserole dish.
3. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg, Panko, seasonings, shredded cheese, bacon, and green onions. Mix until thoroughly combined.
4. Spoon the mixture into each mushrooms, mounded it slightly up in the center.
5. Sprinkle each mushroom with parmesan cheese,
6. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is browned and the mushrooms are aldente.

Yields 6 servings.

Eat, Bork, & Be Merry!

~ Kate