I recently turned 30, it was a big deal. Or it felt like it should be a big deal, I don’t actually feel any older. One change that occurred shortly before my 30th birthday, was a significant one- I started liking mushrooms. It is the weirdest thing as I have always hated mushrooms, everything about them- the texture, the taste, the smell, the fact that they’re a fungus. My friend Ashley has been trying to get me to like mushrooms (and beans- I’m still holding out on that one) for as long as I’ve known her. I’ve always said “Yuck, they taste like dirt-no way!” And then one random day I was walking through the produce aisle at Cub, I saw the mushrooms, and I thought, “well, aren’t you guys cute little things” and I bought them. I roasted them and I put them in my veggie rice bowl. I liked them, they still tasted like dirt, but I appreciated the earthyness of them. And so it began.
Every year the FWVZ section at work celebrates the Holidays with a pot luck and white elephant gift party at one of our coworker’s houses. It is a grand ole time. I usually bring my cranberry jalapeno dip that I love, but this year I wanted to bring mushrooms. I’m obsessed! So, I scoured the internet and my friend’s brains for good stuffed mushrooms recipes. Stuffing them with clams, crab meat, or sausage was suggested a lot. I was scared by the clam and crab, and wanted them to be meat-free for some of my vegetarian co-workers. I finally landed on this recipe that I found on Pinterest. I changed it a tad, adding some things that sounded like good ideas when I was at Cub, and taking away some things I didn’t want. They must have turned out pretty good, because they were all gone at the end of the night!
Other than the somewhat tedious prep work, these are really easy and you don’t need many ingredients! (note that I failed to take an ingredient picture, sort of on purpose cuz i’m lazy). A couple of notes: 1) I used the smaller ‘whole white mushrooms’ not the bigger ones that say “for stuffing on them” 2) I bought fresh spinach and wilted it in a pot of boiling water, you could also buy frozen spinach
Start by gently washing the mushrooms. This is pretty important because you know mushrooms are grown in dirt and dirt contains gross bacteria, and we learned in kindergarten not to eat dirt, and #PublicHealth
Then remove the stem. This is pretty easy, just gently pull the stem toward one side and it should pop right out. I wasn’t impressed with the size of the stuffing hole I got with my little mushrooms, so I used a small spoon to dig out some of the mushroom insides (I saved these and used them in the mix). This step does make the mushrooms look a little bit more un-appetizing but it is the reality. Try to ignore that – they get better!
The next step is really easy. Put the cream cheese, spinach, cheese, yogurt, and garlic in a medium sized bowl and stir until it’s all combined.
Then stir in the artichoke hearts, which you’ve finely chopped, and season with salt and pepper.
The next step is also somewhat tedious, fill the mushrooms caps with the filling. I used a small spoon to fill each one, pressing it in nicely to it fills the whole cap. I used enough so each cap was a little rounded. Dana suggested that next time I should put the filling into a plastic bag, snip a corner off and use it to pipe in the filling. On
Place neatly in a greased baking dish.
Last step- combine the breadcrumbs and the rest of the cheese in a small bowl and sprinkle over the stuffed mushrooms.
Cover with tinfoil and bake at 400 for 15 minues, uncover and bake for 5 more minutes until the cheese is melty and the mushrooms are golden brown.
Wait until they cool a bit, then pop one in your mouth!
Fun side note- I was carrying the dish into the party that night, tilted it slightly and poured hot mushroom juice all down the front of my coat and onto my tights. Winning.
- Whole mushrooms (I used the smaller white mushrooms)
- Cream cheese, 2 oz
- Spinach, 1 cup wilted and chopped (I bag fresh)
- Greek yogurt, ⅓ cup
- Grated cheese, ⅓ cup (I used an italian 6 cheese blend) + 3 T for topping
- Minced or grated garlic, 1 t
- artichoke hearts (from a jar of marinated artichokes), 1 cup finely chopped
- salt and pepper
- bread crumbs, ¼ cup
- Wash and remove the stems of each mushroom
- Combine spinach, yogurt, cream cheese, grated cheese blend, and garlic in a medium bowl
- Stir in artichoke hearts and salt and pepper
- Stuff each mushroom cap with the spin dip
- Combine the breadcrumbs and 3 T of cheese, sprinkle over the mushrooms
- Cover with tinfoil and bake at 400 for 15 minutes, remove the tinfoil and bake for 5 more minutes, or until the mushrooms are golded brown and the cheese is melted
Leave a Reply