Button mushrooms are the most commonly eaten mushroom in the United States. Ninety percent of all mushrooms consumed are the plain, white button mushroom. That’s a lot of mushrooms. (They’re my favorites!)
Good news for you if you like button mushrooms, too — researchers from Tufts University have decided that this is the healthiest mushroom around. White button mushrooms can do some amazing things like:
- Boost immune system activity.
- Ward off viruses (thanks to that revved up immune system action).
- Destroy tumors.
- Protect against cancer, thanks to high antioxidant content. Antioxidants kill dangerous free radicals in the body (that can contribute to cancer risk).
As if I needed another reason to eat more mushrooms! Button mushrooms are abundant and affordable. There are lots of ways to eat them, but here are some of my favorites:
- Add them to your favorite spaghetti sauce. I love marinara sauce with button mushrooms and black olives.
- Add them to omelets — mushrooms and your favorite veggies for a “garden harvest” omelet or mushrooms, peppers, and ham for a Western-style omelet.
- Sprinkle them over your salad.
- Serve marinated mushrooms as appetizers at your next gathering. You can marinate your own mushrooms at home by soaking button mushrooms in low-fat or non-fat Italian dressing.
- Like stuffed mushrooms? I do! They can be a bit of work to make, unless you want to try my recipe for Inside Out Stuffed Mushrooms.
One last reason to LOVE button mushrooms? You can save lots of calories by swapping mushrooms for rice or pasta in your favorite dishes. Swap one cup of rice or pasta for one cup of mushrooms and you’ll save two hundred calories. Make the switch twice per week and you can lose as much as six pounds in a year. I’m tempted to run to the store right now and pick up a pack of button mushrooms.