Wild Rice Casserole

This is one of those recipes that my family really loved… this time but they likely wouldn’t want to eat it often. Don’t get me wrong, this is a delightful meal or side dish! We aren’t used to eating dairy that often. For one thing, it doesn’t always sit well in Cam’s system. ahem… he gets a bit windy.

This recipe comes from the cookbook Super Natural Everyday. Here’s what I did:

Wild Rice Casserole

• 2 large Eggs
• 1 cup Cottage Cheese
• 1/2 cup Sour Cream
• 1 tsp Dijon or Whole Grain Mustard
• Salt
• 1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
• 1 cup Cremini Mushrooms, chopped
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 3 cups cooked Wild Rice
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Gruyere Cheese
• 1 tsp chopped fresh Thyme or Tarragon

1. Cook the wild rice and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350’F with the rack in the top third of the oven. Rub a medium large baking dish with a bit of butter or use the cast iron skillet.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese, sour cream, dijon and a scant 1/2 tsp of salt.
4. In a cast iron skillet, over high heat, combine the butter with a couple pinches of salt. Stir in the mushrooms. After the initial stirring, leave the mushrooms alone until they release their water and the water evaporates, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook and stir every couple minutes until the mushrooms are just browned.
5. Add the onion and cook until the onion is translucent, another 2 or 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cook for another minute and remove from the heat. Add the rice to the skillet and stir until combined.
6. Add the rice mixture to the cottage cheese mixture and stir until well combined. Turn into the prepared dish or back into the cast iron skillet. Sprinkle with two thirds of the grated cheese and cover with foil.
7. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 20- 30 minutes until the casserole takes on a lot of colour. The finished casserole should be hot throughout and golden along the edges.
8. Served sprinkled with the remaining cheese and chopped thyme or tarragon.