Creamed spinach stuffed mushrooms

Sometimes you just have to stuff a mushroom. They’re rich and earthy, and do a very good job of filling you up when you just want something hearty and comforting. And very good way to transform ‘comforting’ into ‘that was so good I just want to pass out’ is to add creamed spinach. That’s right. Creamed spinach stuffed inside a roasted mushroom… I die.

I’ll admit, I totally overstuffed these babies – and the filling was so thick and creamy that the tomato sort of started sliding off the top. But you can cope with that, right? If it means you get more creamy spinach? I thought so. If you want yours to be a little neater (e.g. for a dinner party, or for any purpose other than immediate inhalation), you could always be a little stingier with the filling. But stinginess isn’t really something I do, so I just went for it and crammed it all in there.

By the way, if I was going to serve creamed spinach as a side dish on its own, I wouldn’t make it nearly this creamy – it would be far too rich. However since there’s only a spoonful or two inside each mushroom, it’s perfect for this purpose.

I seem to love topping everything with a slice of tomato lately (see: ricotta and tomato tart) – it looks so pretty, and rounds the dish off nicely without needing to top it with cheese or breadcrumbs, which are my usual toppings for anything baked. Admittedly, cheese and breadcrumbs are pretty awesome, but the creamed spinach is rich enough without. The tomato roasts slightly in the oven and the juicy sweetness and gorgeous red colour are welcome additions to just about anything.

We ate these creamed spinach stuffed mushrooms as a lunchtime meal with a little bit of crusty bread and butter (which I could eat forever) at the side, but you could have these alongside a ‘proper’ meal as well.