Recipe: $3.22 | Per Serving: $1.61 | Yield: 2 Sandwiches

This sandwich. It’s the best of the best of the best. It’s a Mushroom Melt. Or a Mushroom Grilled Cheese. And it’s amazing. Between this and the Thai Coconut Soup, I’ve definitely got another mushroom eater in my house! This sandwich will convert you. Come to the dark side.

I made the garlic butter mushrooms in this dish after having a similar dish at a restaurant here in Japan. Secret ingredient? Soy sauce! I would bet that it’s got something to do with the umami-ness of soy sauce and the umami-ness of mushrooms that make this combo so awesome.

Mix in some greens (spinach!) and some cheese and you’ve got the makings of a Mushroom Melt. Which is basically grilled cheese with mushrooms and spinach. It can also be made open-faced in a toaster if that’s more your style.

We’re heading back to the states at the beginning of March (happy-sad), but I am excited for an American kitchen. More space, more gadgets, and an oven!

It’s nice having access to lots of different foods and gadgets and space in general, but I will miss the wide variety of mushrooms available to us in Japan. You know what we don’t have in Japan? A wide variety of cheeses.

So this recipe is just in time for me to explore the wide variety of cheeses to make various mushroom grilled cheese sandwiches allll the time!

What Cheese Is Best for Mushroom Grilled Cheese?

Mozzarella
Provolone
Goat cheese (YUM)
Swiss, Gruyere, and Fontina (these are similar slightly smelly cheeses)
Mild Cheddar
Muenster or Havarti

This is part personal preference, part melt-ability. Aged cheeses like Parmesan and aged cheddar are harder and have a lower moisture content, making them less likely to melt. If you like the flavor of hard cheeses, but the texture of melty cheese, I recommend mixing them together.

How to Make a Mushroom Melt

You certainly don’t need a fancy appliance to make this mushroom melt! You just need your favorite bread, cheese, spinach, and of course, garlic butter mushrooms.

You’ll want to make a double batch of those mushrooms so you’ll have enough for this delicious bowl of kale & soba with garlic butter mushrooms.

I usually use shiitakes when I make this recipe, but you could get super fancy with trumpet mushrooms, or you can keep it simple with your basic cremini mushrooms. Either way, you’re going to have a delicious final product!
As for the cheese, I’ve been using mozzarella, because Japan is not a cheese country, as I mentioned. I’d also recommend provolone, goat cheese, and maybe even some white cheddar.
You can use whatever bread you like, but I’m partial to the crusty, seed, whole wheat variety.

You basically mix together all the filling ingredients, pile the mixture on top of butter-fried bread, and then let the sandwiches cook on both sides until everything is gooey. SO GOOD!

I recommend serving this with soup in the winter and salad in the summer. Enjoy!

PIN THIS RECIPE FOR LATER!

Vegetarian: Yes!
Paleo: No, but I think you could finagle your way into something similar. Try Bread Srsly for Paleo-ish bread, coconut aminos for soy sauce, ghee for butter, and maybe some Kite Hill or Treeline nut-based cream cheese in place of cheese.

Mushroom Melt

Author: Caitlin
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 24 mins
Total Time: 29 mins
Yield: 2 1x

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Description

This delicious mushroom melt – or mushroom grilled cheese – is an absolute crowd pleaser! These garlic butter mushrooms will even convert the mushroom haters!

Ingredients

Scale

For the Mushrooms:

1–1.5 Tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic
4 ounces mushrooms (shiitake, button, cremini, etc.)
1 teaspoon soy sauce

For the Mushroom Melt:

1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
1/2 cup shredded cheese (gruyere, mozzarella, provolone all work here)
red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon butter
4 slices bread (hearty wheat/seedy/whole grain bread is the bomb)

Instructions

For the Mushrooms: Melt the butter in a large skillet (mine is nonstick) over low heat. Peel the garlic and crush it with the flat side of your knife, then slice it into strips. Add to the butter and cook over LOW HEAT for about 2 minutes. (It should not brown. If it does, the heat is too high.)
Wash the mushrooms and slice them into 1/8-1/4 inch slices. Add to skillet, and stir to coat with butter, then spread out. Cook undisturbed for 5 minutes. Stir and cook 5 minutes more. Increase the heat to about medium-low and cook for about 5 minutes to brown the mushrooms.
Finally, add a splash of soy sauce (about 2 teaspoons). Stir well and cook for just another 30-60 seconds. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.
For the Mushroom Melt: Combine the spinach with the mushrooms and sauté just until the spinach has wilted. Place in a bowl and mix with the shredded cheese and cayenne or red pepper flakes. (If using slices, I recommend ripping them up and combining them with this mixture.)
Stovetop: Melt the 1 Tablespoon butter in the skillet and place two pieces of bread in the skillet. Top with the mushroom-spinach-cheese mixture and the other two slices of bread. Grill for a couple of minutes, until the bread has gotten dark and crispy. Flip and cook the other side another few minutes. Remove from heat, slice in half, and serve!
Toaster: Top two slices of bread with the mushroom-spinach-cheese mixture and place in toaster (maybe on a toaster sheet to avoid spillage). Place the other two slices of bread in the toaster as well. Toast on about medium for 4-8 minutes. Every toaster is different so be sure to check your bread often! Close up the sandwiches, cut in half, and serve.