Low-Calorie Mushrooms with Cheese

Stuffed mushrooms with zero added fat. No butter, no oil. The caps stay moist from washing (don’t dry them), and that moisture is what makes the Parmesan-breadcrumb mixture stick to the outside like a crunchy shell.

The stems get chopped and mixed with the remaining cheese and fresh parsley, then spooned back into the caps. Each mushroom gets a crispy Parmesan coat on the outside and a cheesy, herb-flecked filling on the inside. High heat bakes them fast, browning the crumbs before the mushrooms have time to turn soggy.

Six ingredients, 20 minutes start to finish, and you’ve got a hot appetizer that nobody will believe is low-calorie.

Kitchen Tips

• Leave the mushrooms moist after washing. This recipe relies on that surface moisture to bind the crumb coating. Pat-drying them (like you’d normally do) defeats the purpose here.
• Use freshly grated Parmesan or Romano, not the pre-grated shelf-stable kind. It melts and browns better.
• Italian-style breadcrumbs already have seasoning in them, so go easy on the garlic salt.
• Bake on a non-stick pan sprayed with cooking spray. The cheese can stick aggressively at this high temperature.

Variations

• Add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the filling for a spicy kick.
• Mix in a tablespoon of finely diced sun-dried tomatoes with the stem filling.
• Use Romano cheese for a sharper, more assertive flavor than Parmesan.