Wild Rice Dinner Casserole

Serves 12

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. ground sausage or ground beef (your choice - pick only one)
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1 lb. sliced button mushrooms
• 1 cup sweet Vidalia onion, finely chopped
• ½ cup celery, finely chopped
• 2 cups sour cream
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups long-grain and wild rice, cooked
• ½ cup slivered almonds (optional)

Additional ingredients needed:

• ¼ to ½ cup warm chicken broth (heat in microwave or on stovetop)

Directions:

In a skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage or beef. Remove meat from skillet, drain fat. Set meat aside. Using that same skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add the mushrooms, onion, and celery. Sauté vegetables until tender, for about 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set vegetables aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine sour cream, soy sauce and salt and pepper. Fold in the meat, vegetables, rice and almonds. Pour mixture into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, for one hour or until heated through, stirring occasionally and adding a little of the warm chicken broth during the baking process as needed for desired moistness.

About the rice:

• Long-grain rice is a type of rice that is long and slender. Examples include basmati, Carolina, jasmine or Texmati.
• Cooks often prefer long-grain rice in baked dishes such as casseroles or pilafs because the rice doesn’t clump when cooked.
• Our recipe calls for cooked long-grain wild rice, which is a blend of parboiled long-grain rice and wild rice, a type of aquatic grass seed.
• Long-grain and wild rice blends generally come with easy-to-follow cooking instructions. Most directions suggest boiling the rice in water and simmering it until tender.
• Wild rice boosts nutritional content as it contains protein and fiber and is also a solid source of B vitamins and minerals.
• Not only do wild rice blends offer a pleasant texture, but they have a delicious flavor featuring nuttiness and earthiness.