Kaitlynn lives in Benton, Arkansas. She is an aspiring author, wellness enthusiast, and enjoys sharing her health journey with others. See the archives of her articles at mysaline.com/kaitlynn.
Not So Scary Stuffed Mushrooms
By Kaitlynn Garrett
Has anyone else ever been intimidated by an appetizer? No? Just me? Hopefully I’m not the only one who has experienced this. Let me explain myself. For the longest time, I thought that the popular appetizer / side dish of stuffed mushrooms was an incredibly fancy and time-consuming dish to make. They were something I pictured being served at restaurants with white tablecloths and opening nights of displays at art galleries. I’m not sure where I got this idealized view of stuffed mushrooms, but it is what it is. Don’t ask.
It wasn’t until I was scrolling through TikTok (as one does for hours at a time) that I saw someone sharing how they made them. In about 60 seconds, my mind was blown. She literally mixed some things in a bowl, stuffed the mushrooms, and put them in the oven. That was it. That was all. Nothing more to it. I honestly hadn’t felt that confused since my college chemistry class lab days. It was an experience. It was an epiphany for me.
This definitely sounds melodramatic, and I am aware of that fact, but I’m seriously hoping that I am not the only person who has been deceived into thinking that there are foods that sound complicated that are actually super simple. I haven’t looked into it yet, but I’m pretty sure that I’ve also been lied to about the complexity of Crab Rangoon. I don’t know if my heart can take the truth, so I’ll Google that another day.
Now, onto the recipe. For this, I used baby bella mushrooms. The video I originally saw used portabella mushrooms. It’s definitely up to you and your size preferences. The mushrooms I used worked for me this time, but the next time I make these, I’ll use the portabellas to have a bigger surface to work with. I also intended to use parmesan cheese, but the store was out of stock, so I used nutritional yeast that I had at home.
Recipe (Inspired from @lowcarbstateofmind on TikTok / Instagram)
Ingredients
- 1 Container of Baby Bella Mushrooms
- 4 Oz. Cream Cheese
- 2 Tsp. Minced Garlic
- 1 Tsp. Onion Powder
- ¾ Cup Spinach
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Nutritional Yeast or Parmesan Cheese (Optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400˚
- Wash your mushrooms and wipe them with a damp paper towel
- Begin removing the stems and centers of the mushrooms
- You can definitely save the stems and use them in other recipes. I tried but they burned in the oven because of course they did. Haha maybe don’t try to cook them in the oven along with the whole mushrooms as I did.
- In a mixing bowl, add your cream cheese. To make it easier to mix, I microwaved mine for about 30 seconds and took it out when it made popping noises and I got scared that it would explode.
- Gather your spinach into a bunch and chop it pretty finely.
- Add your garlic, onion powder, salt, pepper, and spinach. Mix it well.
- I topped mine with some nutritional yeast to give it a nice “cheesy” crust on top.
- Take a spoon and fill each mushroom with the mixture. Make sure you stand them up carefully so that they don’t spill over in the oven.
- Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes.
- I served mine on the side with some steak and salad.
Am I still intimidated by stuffed mushrooms? Nope. Will I make these again and again? Absolutely. Will I use bigger mushrooms next time so that I can have even more of them? Darn right I will. Anyways, I hope that whether or not you’ve thought stuffed mushrooms were daunting in the past you get the opportunity to try to make this surprisingly simple recipe.