Recipe - Wild Rice Sausage Casserole

If you're looking for a unique low-carb addition to your Thanksgiving dinner, here is a great recipe that will have everyone asking for seconds! This will go great with your Thanksgiving turkey, and makes a unique addition to your plate, with the special flavor of wild rice combined with the richness of the sausage and woodsy mushrooms.

This dish can be made ahead the day (or a couple of days) before, and reheated for your Thanksgiving meal to make things easier.

Wild Rice & Sausage CasseroleImage by mpesce via Flickr

Ingredients:

2/3 cup wild rice, rinsed and drained
3 1/2 cups stock (chicken or vegetable), divided
2 Tbsp olive oil or butter, divided
12 oz. ground sausage (your favorite kind - we like fresh ground all-natural sweet Italian)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme
12 oz. mushrooms
3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped fine
salt and black pepper to taste
toasted almond slivers for garnish (optional)

Directions: 

1. Combine wild rice and 3 cups of stock in a saucepan, bring to a simmer, cover and let rice cook until tender, from 50 to 65 minutes, depending on the rice and your stove.  Check to make sure it's not cooking too hard after a few minutes. (Or follow the instructions on your package of wild rice.)
2. Drain the rice through a colander to make sure it's dry, then put in a large bowl.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. In skillet over medium heat, put the sausage and cook until just browned slightly; then dump into bowl with cooked rice.
5. In same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil or butter over low heat, and add the onions, cooking until they start to turn golden brown in color.  This will take a while, as the onions are carmelizing, possibly 10 minutes or more.
6. When the onions are golden and soft, add the thyme, stir and cook for 1 minute more, then add this mixture to the bowl with the sausage and rice.
7. In the same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil or butter, add chopped mushrooms and cook until they soften and get golden brown and the moisture from the mushrooms disappears.
8. Dump the mushrooms into the bowl with the sausage and rice mixture.
9. Then in the bowl, add the parsley, remaining 1/2 cup stock, and season with salt and pepper to taste, mix gently, then turn into a baking dish.
10. Cover and bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
11. Add toasted almond slivers when served if desired.