Greek Portobello Mushroom Burgers complete with a Greek salsa and a spicy peperoncini feta spread will bring a little Mediterranean to your kitchen.

I don’t think I could live in a world without mushrooms. I’d say it’s one of my favorite vegetables, but actually it’s a fungus. So I’ll say it’s my favorite non-meat ingredient because it sounds better. I tend to throw mushrooms into everything I cook – pasta, fajitas, tacos, pizza, soup, stews. However, mushrooms have always been the sidekick, never the star. This past June I attended a conference where we had a multi-course lunch featuring mushrooms as the hero or co-star. Mushroom tacos, turkey mushroom burgers, lamb and mushroom corn dogs (!), even mushroom cheesesteaks. Ever since that weekend, I kept envisioning these Greek Portobello Mushroom Burgers. Meaty portobello mushroom caps topped with a Greek salsa. The question then became – when to make and share them? Mezzetta asked me to team up with them about sharing a killer sandwich in honor of their $25,000 Make That Sandwich Contest. Once they sent me a few Mediterranean-inspired products, I knew these Greek mushroom burgers had to happen (and quickly!).

I am not exaggerating when I say I made five of these burgers. Five. That’s because I accidentally bought too many portobello mushroom caps. The first pack of mushroom caps I bought were way too big for the buns. Although portobello mushrooms do shrink when roasted, they were still huge. Back to the store I went for smaller caps. Lesson learned – buy portobello mushrooms a little bigger than your bun (but not too big because they won’t shrink *that* much).

Did you know there are a million ways you could make Greek salsa? Seriously, there are so many wonderful Mediterranean ingredients that I made a huge list of possibilities. Not wanting to overcrowd it, I narrowed it down to tomatoes, cucumbers, kalamata olives, Mezzetta peperoncini, feta, and lemon juice. The deli-ready peperoncini slices make it much easier to prepare the salsa (plus the resealable jar means peperoncinis are ready in your fridge at a moment’s notice).

To tie all of the Greek flavors together, I used Mezzetta Peperoncini and Feta Spread as the condiment on the bun, which you can find in most grocery stores nationwide. The sandwich overall had a little bit of a spicy bite to it but didn’t make you cry. So if you want to kick your dish up a notch but still stay on the tame side, try peperoncinis because they are at the very bottom of the hot pepper scale.

Now I’m not allowed to enter the Mezzetta Make That Sandwich contest, but you can! Enter to win cash prizes – grand prize winner receives $25,000, and two runner-up winners receive $1,000. Got your sandwich ready? Then head on over to their site to submit.

Greek Portobello Mushroom Burgers

Yield: 2

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

When buying portobello mushrooms, pick mushrooms that are slightly bigger than your bun. They will shrink after roasting.

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Ingredients

• 2 portobello mushroom caps, stem and gills removed
• Olive oil, for brushing
• Sea salt, for sprinkling
• 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1/4 cup chopped cucumber, peeled and seeded
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted
• 2 tablespoons chopped Mezzetta peperoncini
• 1 tablespoon feta cheese
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons Mezzetta Spicy Peperoncini and Feta Spread
• 2 hamburger buns

Instructions

2. Preheat oven to 425F. Brush both top and bottom of each mushroom cap with olive oil and place gill side up on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with sea salt. Bake the mushrooms for 15-20 minutes or under tender.
3. Meanwhile in a medium mixing bowl, mix together the tomatoes, cucumber, olives, peperoncini, feta, and lemon juice.
4. Spread 1 tablespoon of peperoncini and feta spread on each hamburger bun top. Place each mushroom on the each bun bottom. Top with salsa and remaining bun.

 

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