This Mushroom Rice Casserole is filled with ooey parmesan cheese, sliced baby bella mushrooms, cream cheese, and tender jasmine rice for a hearty side dish or meatless meal.

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Mushrooms are the star of this easy rice casserole. They add a delicious heartiness to the meal without adding any meat! Although, you could certainly add chicken to it. That would be a wonderful way to make this a full meal.
Fresh spinach is great in casseroles as well. It is so versatile and a vegetable that truly tastes good. Looking for more spinach recipes? Why not try Greek Chicken Meatballs, or this Garlic Butter Sauteed Spinach, or maybe this Homemade Spinach Pasta.
Why you'll love this recipe
- Oven baked side dish: Take all of the regular ingredients that go in creamed spinach and add rice and mushrooms, and you have this delicious side dish!
- Creamy: A dairy free dish, this is not. It has whole milk, shredded parmesan cheese, and cream cheese. But I'm sure I don't have to convince you how delicious that makes this...
- Simple: This casserole is great for holidays like thanksgiving and christmas because it feels a little extra special and pairs well with a lot of main dishes.
- Make ahead: This rice dish can be made 1-2 days ahead and then baked right before you want to serve it.
Ingredients
- Fresh Baby Spinach
- Cremini mushrooms
- Onion
- Rice
- Chicken Stock
- olive oil
- butter
- garlic
- salt
- shredded parmesan cheese
- cream cheese
- whole milk
Variations and Substitutions
- If you do decide to bake it, there are a few routes you could go. Bake, as is, bake with breadcrumbs, or bake with more cheese sprinkled on top.
- You can substitute the cream cheese with ricotta cheese or mascarpone cheese. If you have never cooked with mascarpone, try it! It's similar in texture to cream cheese.
How do you make Creamy Spinach Casserole?
Begin by preparing rice. For rice, you use a 2 to 1 ratio, 2 parts liquid to 1 part rice. In a medium sized saucepan, place rice and stock and bring to a boil, cover and turn heat to the lowest setting. The rice will take about 12 minutes from the time you place the lid on it.
While the rice is cooking, begin your sauce. Add olive oil and butter to a large saucepan on medium-high heat. Once the butter has melted, add in diced onions and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until translucent.
Next, add your mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 5-7 minutes, until the mushrooms have started to cook down.
Turn heat down to medium low, and add milk, cream cheese, salt, and shredded parmesan. Stir until cream cheese has completely melted and everything is well combined.
Take off heat, stir in chopped spinach and cooked rice. Serve as is, or top with ½ cup of parmesan cheese and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Recipe Tips
- Baking this in the oven is optional. Everything is already cooked through before if goes in the oven. If you don't bake it, it will remain more creamy and saucy. I love it that way! However, baking the casserole gives it a nice bubbly crust.
What can you serve this spinach bake with?
- Chicken, such as air fryer chicken thighs or crusted chicken romano.
- Air Fryer Salmon
- Tender Bavette Steak
Recipe FAQs
Yes it can! It will give off extra liquid, so I suggest thawing it first and ringing out some of the water in a kitchen towel.
More rice recipes
If you tried this Mushroom Rice Casserole or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love to hear from you.
Creamy Spinach Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 5 oz. package fresh baby spinach roughly chopped
- 10 oz. sliced baby bellas (cremini mushrooms)
- 1 small onion diced finely
- 1 ½ cups rice dry
- 3 cups stock chicken or vegetable
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese plus ½ cup for top (optional)
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 1 cup whole milk
Instructions
- Begin by preparing rice. In a medium sized saucepan, place rice and stock and bring to a boil. Then immediately cover and turn heat to the lowest setting. The rice will take about 12 minutes from the time you place the lid on it.
- While the rice is cooking, begin your sauce. Add olive oil and butter to a large saucepan on medium-high heat. Once the butter has melted, add in diced onions and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until translucent.
- Next, add your mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 5-7 minutes, until the mushrooms have started to cook down.
- Turn heat down to medium low, and add milk, cream cheese, salt, and shredded parmesan. Stir until cream cheese has completely melted and everything is well combined.
- Take off heat, stir in chopped spinach and cooked rice. Serve as is, or top with ½ cup of parmesan cheese and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
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