Mushrooms are a super-low-calorie vegetable and a heart healthy food– 5 white button mushrooms contain a mere 20 calories! The most commonly consumed mushroom is the white button mushroom, but other mushrooms can also provide their own unique flavors to dishes such as the portobello, shiitake, oyster, maitake, crimini and beech mushrooms. It is one of the major constituents of low cholesterol recipes that help reduce cholesterol.

Even though mushrooms contain 90% water, they are rich in many vitamins and minerals, specifically Vitamin D (mushrooms are one of the few food sources of vitamin D on the planet), B vitamins (panotothenic acid, riboflavin, niacin), Selenium, and Potassium.

Luckily, spring is here and the warmer weather and long days will improve our vitamin D levels naturally because we will be getting more exposure to direct sunlight. That said, mushrooms are quite versatile in mediterranean recipes, add mushrooms to your egg white omelets, salads, soups, stir fries, pizzas, and vegetable side dishes.

Try this weekly’s simple Italian inspired recipe, Roasted Mushrooms with Sun-dried Tomatoes!

Recipe

Roasted Mushrooms with Sundried Tomatoes
Give your basic roasted mushroom dish a flavorful kick inspired from Italy by incorporating fresh or dried seasonings such as basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, and red pepper flakes.

Yield: 4 servings  (1 serving = 1/2 cup)

Ingredients

• 1 lb of baby bell mushrooms (or white mushrooms), washed, halved
• 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp of cracked black pepper
• ½ tsp of dried basil
• ½ tsp of dried oregano
• ½ tsp of dried thyme
• ½ tsp of dried rosemary
• ½ cup of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• Optional: ¼ tsp of red pepper flakes

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 º F.
In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together except the sun-dried tomatoes.
Spread mushroom mixture onto a baking sheet and place in the oven.
Roast the mushrooms for 30 minutes.
Place the mushrooms in a large bowl and add the sun-dried tomatoes.
Serve hot or cold.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:

Calories: 74 kcals
Fat: 4g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Carbohydrate: 8g
Dietary Fiber: 2g
Protein: 5g
Sodium: 147 mg