Chef notes
Give your stuffing some Italian flair on Thanksgiving with mushrooms, sweet Italian sausage and rice.
Ingredients
- 1½ cup wild rice
- 1 ½ cup Arborio rice
- 1 large onion, diced
- 4 stalks of celery, diced
- 4 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
- Container of mixed gourmet mushrooms, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 ½ pound sweet Italian sausage casing removed
- 2 eggs
- 4-6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Bay leaf
Preparation
In a large saucepan, heat chicken stock with a small onion, bay leaf and 1 ½ teaspoons coarse salt, add wild rice . Cover and bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender, about 1 hour; add a little water during cooking if necessary.
Cook Arborio rice in chicken stock according to instruction on box, set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet, brown the sausage meat over moderate heat, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool slightly, then coarsely chop.
Heat 2 tablespoon of the olive oil in the skillet. Add the onions, celery and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat stirring often, until translucent.
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in the skillet. Add the chopped mixed mushrooms and cook over high heat, stirring, until softened and browned, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add mushrooms to the onion mixture. Stir in the wild rice, Arborio rice and sausage and season again with salt and pepper. Com bine all together add parsley, crack a raw egg and stir to bind together.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Cover the dish with foil and bake the stuffing for about 20 minutes, until heated through or if you wish to make ahead:
The recipe can be prepared to Step 4 up to 1 day ahead; cover and refrigerate. Let return to room temperature before baking.
