stuffed mushrooms

I found these plump baby bella mushrooms the other day without much thought as to what I would do with them. I've always loved mushrooms and their earthy, juicy, almost meaty flavor and texture. These baby bellas offer a bit more taste than your run of the mill button whites, which were what the stuffed mushrooms recipe originally called for.

I ended up making Leek, Celery, and Ricotta Stuffed Mushrooms and Crimini Stuffed Mushrooms with Ricotta. Both were based on the "Leek, Fennel, and Goat Cheese" and "Porcini Stuffed Mushrooms with Camembert" recipes, respectively. There were a total of four stuffed mushroom recipes, the other two being "Broccoli Rabe and Pancetta" and "Polenta." I've only had fennel a few times and thought that the licorice taste would pair well, but I couldn't find any fennel bulbs at my local market, so I substituted celery instead. I got to practice my knife skills for the leek and celery, since I don't own a mandoline quite yet. A milder ricotta replaced the goat cheese since I'm not a big fan of cheeses.

As for the Crimini Stuffed ones, I used all fresh mushrooms chopped finely and topped with ricotta. Figured I already had ricotta, so why buy another cheese that I would only use a few slices of and be left with a big hunk sitting in my fridge?

These little bites became dinner for the night. The celery was an acceptable replacement, however I think the fennel would have added a more distinct dimension of flavor. They were also more texturally satisfying since the greens offered a bit of crunch as opposed to the similar taste and texture of the crimini stuffed ones.

I only made two out of the four stuffed mushroom recipes, so maybe I'll come back to finish the other two when bitter broccoli rabe sounds tasty. Or better yet when I think of a substitution for it.