Couscous-Stuffed Mushrooms

Late June. The food sovereignty conference was Saturday. Tulsa downtown. We drove in Friday evening, stayed at a hotel, attended the conference Saturday. Hannah was the recipient of the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Recognition Award. She gave a five-minute speech. She talked about her mother. She talked about Rosa's tamales. She talked about the people of Elohi Foods. She did not talk about herself. She is unable to talk about herself.

I sat at a round table in the back of the room and watched my wife receive an award she deserved more than the award itself could express. The room clapped for her for thirty seconds. She came back to the table. She said: that was awful. I said: that was beautiful. She said: I want to go home. I said: we're leaving in an hour. She said: thank you. The award is on the bookshelf in our living room now. She has not looked at it once. I look at it twice a week.

Sunday Tommy and Kai and Danielle arrived. Tommy is six. Tommy ran. Tommy ran and ran. Tommy has a set of carving tools that he brought in his backpack. Tommy said: I make things, Pawpaw. I said: yes. He said: like you. I said: like me. He said: you teach me? I said: yes.

The next ten days are blurring. I taught Tommy to use a hammer properly. I taught him to mark a piece of wood with a pencil. I taught him to make a straight cut with a hand saw. He was patient and serious. Kai watched. Kai welded with me again on the third afternoon. He has lost some of the technique from last summer but it came back fast. The Whitehawk men in the bay. Danny's oxygen tank valve on the wall. The continuity that doesn't require words.

The conference banquet on Saturday evening served something close to these — a stuffed mushroom with grain and herbs, the kind of food that is serious without being showy, which felt right for a room full of people who care about where food comes from. Hannah ate three of them and said nothing, which is how she registers that something is good. In the days after, with Tommy and Kai and Danielle filling the house, I made a version of them myself — something I could put on the table that held a little of that Saturday in it, the award on the shelf, the thirty seconds of applause, the weight of a week I did not want to let go of all at once.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 45 minutes | Servings: 4–6

Ingredients

12 large cremini or baby portobello mushrooms, stems removed and reserved
1 cup couscous
1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup finely diced red bell pepper
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
Lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Heat oven to 375°F. Finely chop the reserved mushroom stems and set aside. Wipe mushroom caps clean with a damp cloth and arrange them cavity-side up in a lightly oiled baking dish.
Cook the couscous. Bring vegetable broth to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in the couscous, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork and set aside.
Sauté the filling. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped mushroom stems, red bell pepper, and green onions. Cook 4–5 minutes until softened. Add garlic, cumin, and smoked paprika; cook 1 minute more.
Combine. Remove skillet from heat. Fold in the cooked couscous, parsley, and feta if using. Season generously with salt and pepper. The mixture should hold together loosely when pressed.
Stuff the mushrooms. Spoon the couscous filling into each mushroom cap, mounding it slightly. Drizzle the remaining tablespoon of olive oil evenly over the tops.
Bake. Bake uncovered for 20–25 minutes, until mushrooms are tender and the tops are lightly golden at the edges. Serve warm with lemon wedges alongside.

Nutrition (per serving)

Couscous-Stuffed Mushrooms — What the Banquet Table Reminded Me We Could Make at Home