“Portobellos were meant to be stuffed!”
Portobello Mushroom Pizzas
Since my childhood days, I think my favorite food has always been pizza as long as one of the toppings is pepperoni. I guess I’ve tried an endless number of toppings including caviar, anchovies, spinach, Eastern Polish sausage, etc., etc. Next to pepperoni my second favorite topping is crispy fried bacon (not Canadian bacon and not bacon bits). I guess you might call me a pizza aficionado but I realized early on and, even more so now, that pizza is one of those foods that must be appreciated (i.e. consumed) in moderation or else it becomes a detriment to one’s health. With that said, let me assure you that this Portobello Mushroom Pizza does not even come close to fitting the category of “unhealthy!”
Ingredients
Instructions
For clarification purposes, we will call the top of the mushroom cap, the "top"; we will call the bottom side of the cap, the "cup".
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Assemble the ingredients and preheat oven to 400°F. Begin by using a dinner spoon to carefully scrape out the black gills without puncturing or tearing the cap. Next use a sharp knife to carefully cut off the stem even with its base of the cup. Discard the stem and gills leavings.
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Coat the top and cup of the mushroom with cooking oil (I prefer spray EVOO). Use an ice pick to poke three or four tiny holes through the bottom of the cup. (Read Notes to learn why.)
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In a non-stick foil lined baking pan place the mushrooms cup side down and bake them for 10 minutes.
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While the mushrooms are cooking, brown the ground meat in a skillet with the olive oil, garlic and shallot. When done, drain and set aside.
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Into the skillet with the meat, add the chopped pepperoni (plus any other desired topping), the pizza sauce, and the Parmesan cheese (I used Asiago). Stir until well combined.
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Remove the mushrooms from the oven, drain any liquid that has collected in the pan and, using a spatula, carefully flip each mushroom over on its top side.
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Spoon half the meaty filler mixture into the first mushroom cup and then the second. Then, sprinkle a quarter cup of Mozzarella (or Italian blend) shredded cheese atop each mushroom. Place several thin pepperoni rounds atop the cheese.
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Return pan to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted. Remove and serve. If desired, sprinkle with basil or parsley when plating.
Serving Size 1 pizza
Servings 2
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories 315kcal
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 19g30%
- Saturated Fat 8g40%
- Cholesterol 59mg20%
- Sodium 375mg16%
- Potassium 311mg9%
- Total Carbohydrate 13g5%
- Dietary Fiber 3g12%
- Sugars 6g
- Protein 23g46%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Note
It goes with saying that the first thing to do when cooking with mushrooms is to clean the mushroom! Occasionally there are bits of dirt remaining on the cap; use a brush (such as a basting brush) or a dry paper towel to lightly brush the dirt particles away. Whatever you do, DO NOT try to use water to remove the dirt because the mushroom is like a sponge and it will absorb most of that water thus ruining the texture and the taste.
I've learned that cooking with 'large portobellos' can be frustrating. I'm not aware of any grocery store within 100 miles of me that offers 'open bin' 'select your own' mushrooms. I'm forced to purchasing pre-packaged mushrooms and I honestly think the packagers go out of there way to always pack one large with one medium, or two mediums but never two large ones. Another calamity is that sometimes they stay there original size and sometimes (i.e. often times) they shrink substantially when cooking. If it is really, really important to you to turn out two large portobellos then I suggest you cook four or five all the way through Instruction Step 6 and then decide on the two large ones you want to proceed with.
About the pizza sauce ... I'm a real stickler when it comes to healthy ingredients in a product and this is especially true about fat grams and sodium content. I tried more than half a dozen different sauces and Delallo Pizza Sauce Pizzeria Style was the winner by a mile! Most importantly, it tastes great and then, to back that up, there's low cal, zero fat, zero cholesterol, very low sodium and carbs. What more could you ask for?
Protein substitutions ... I prefer lean ground beef, but there's always Italian sausage, ground pork, ground chicken, turkey, ham, various Italian meats and the list goes on.
Other toppings ... we don't have enough room on this page for all the toppings you might use. Go to any online pizza joint and look at their topping and that's what you could use plus several hundred more! If you decide to go with my choice of bacon pieces then please note that 2 T of packaged cooked bacon pieces is the equivalent of 2 slices of bacon.
About cheeses ... Parmesan is the standard but I've always preferred Grana Padano or Asiago or even Pecorino-Romano over Parmigiano-Reggiano. And, there are still others available.
Leftover filler ... Occasionally, especially when I am cooking 4 or more servings for this recipe, I will have leftover filler and I like to save it in a zip-lock plastic bag for a day or so and then use it as filler for a zucchini boat and the results are fantastic.