Stuffed mushrooms are one of those easy to prepare, tasty and nutritious meals that can please everybody. Generally speaking, stuffed food recipes are versatile, because most of the taste resides in the stuffing. One can choose the stuffing according to personal preferences or to the seasonality of various foods. Spices are another great way of creating unique, personalized healthy recipes with amazing taste and flavors.

Here’s one of my favorite stuffed mushrooms recipes, healthy, cheap and doable in no more than 25 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 8 big Portobello mushrooms
• 1/4 of a small celery root, finely grated (don’t use more than 1/4 root, because otherwise the stuffing will have a dry, crumbling texture which is not very nice)
• 1 egg (the egg plays the role of binding the stuffing mixture elements together, but you can skip it or use only the white if you want a low-fat dish)
• 1 cup coarsely grated cottage cheese
• 8 slices of Emmentaler cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15-20 minutes (depending on the mushrooms' size)

Serving: 2-3 people

Method:

Clean the mushrooms thoroughly, detaching their stems. Cut the stems into small pieces, then put them in a bowl and mix them with the egg, the grated cottage cheese, the minced garlic, the grated celery root, the thyme and a pinch of salt. Optionally, you can add other herbs or spices such as red hot chili peppers powder, coriander, cumin or dried basil. Oil a baking dish and put the mushrooms inside, making sure they fit well. If they don’t, take a bigger dish. It is important that the mushrooms stay flat on the bottom of the dish, otherwise the stuffing will drip into the dish. Spoon the egg mixture into each mushroom carefully until you finish it. Bake the mushrooms at medium heat for 10-15 minutes, without covering the dish.

After the 15 minutes, take the dish out of the oven, put on top of each mushroom a slice of Emmentaler cheese, then cook them for another five minutes or until the cheese starts melting. Serve hot, with freshly ground pepper sprinkled on top. I prefer a mix of red, white and black pepper. For a delicious variation, you can serve the stuffed mushrooms with a sour cream topping or with hot salsa.

For some of us, going vegetarian is not an option, despite the current trends which try to prove more and more that vegetables and fruits are the healthiest way to stay one’s hunger. If you long for healthy recipes that include some meat and are easy to prepare, your grill and some chicken breast are your best friends. The healthiest option when buying meat is to go for free range, cereal-fed chicken, because it contains less chemicals and less stress hormones than the meat coming from birds that were raised in batteries.

This is a simple recipe that goes well for either lunch or dinner, healthy, tasty and budget-friendly.

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breast, skinless, boneless, sliced in 6 (slices don’t have to be even, just make sure each of them is thick enough to go through the procedure I’m going to describe below)
• 1 pound button mushrooms (preferably fresh, but canned are also OK)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled, cut in quarters
• 1 small carrot, grated
• 1 big onion, chopped small
• Salt, pepper to taste

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Method:

Beat the chicken breast slices carefully, then sprinkle them with salt and thyme on both sides. Oil and preheat a stove top grill. Grill the meat 4-5 minutes on each side, then put it in a covered dish. Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan, then add the chopped onion and about two tablespoons of water. Cook the onion for 5-6 minutes, then add the button mushrooms. In case you use fresh mushrooms, make sure to wash them thoroughly, to remove all dirt, but don’t detach the stems. Although they need a longer cooking time, whole mushrooms are better than sliced ones, because they preserve their taste better. After you added the mushrooms, mix them well with the onions, add the garlic, add some salt and pepper, then cover the pan and continue cooking for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Arrange the grilled chicken pieces on the plate, add mushrooms and pour some mushroom sauce with onion bits, then sprinkle some raw grated carrot all over the food. There’s no need for side dish, but if you’re keen on having one, a beetroot salad could make a good companion for this grilled chicken breast with mushrooms recipe.

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