Kick off the holiday season in style with Bacon Wrapped Basil Stuffed Mushrooms.
A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I went on vacation to the Florida Keys for a little rest and relaxation. We went to a cozy spot for dinner one night that was known for being very popular with the locals, so you know it was going to be good, right!? It was a cute little tapas place and turned out to be my favorite meal of the whole trip. Tapas, for those of you that don’t know, are Spanish appetizers or “little bites”. I love this style of food because you are able taste so many different dishes instead of having to commit to just one single entrée. The best thing we ordered was a bacon and basil wrapped mushroom served with a pesto aioli. I knew immediately that I needed to recreate it at home.
Football season is here and the holidays are right around the corner, so this is the perfect time for party food. These Bacon Wrapped Basil Stuffed Mushrooms with Pesto Aioli are the only appetizer recipe you will need. When you bring these mushrooms to your next party your friends and family will be asking for the recipe – without a doubt! Dare I say that my version is even better then the one we ordered on our vacation?
I realize that stuffed mushrooms don’t exactly scream Key West, but I assure you that we had our fill of the local cuisine, too. We ate a lot of fresh fish and even some key lime pie – I mean how could you not? While the fish was delicious and the pie was perfectly tart, they still didn’t beat out the mushrooms. The combination was so simple, proving that tasty food doesn’t have to be complicated.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 cup raw almonds any nut or seed you like
- 1 small garlic clove peeled and minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 24 cremini or white mushrooms stems removed
- 12 slices organic bacon
- Pesto Aioli
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
- zest and juice 1/2 lemon
- 1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 garlic clove peeled and minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a food processor add the 1/2 cup basil, almonds, garlic, and salt for the mushroom stuffing.
- Pulse until chopped and well mixed.
- Divide the mixture into the 24 mushrooms, if you have leftover stuffing you can use it in the aioli.
- Cut the bacon in half and wrap each bacon half around one mushroom and secure close with a toothpick.
- Bake the mushrooms in the oven until the bacon is cooked and slightly crisp, about 30-40 minutes.
- While the mushrooms are baking add all of the aioli ingredients to the same food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.
- When the mushrooms are done allow to cool and remove the toothpicks before serving.
- Serve along side the pesto aioli.
- Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Notes
The post Bacon Wrapped Basil Stuffed Mushrooms appeared first on The Organic Dietitian.
