What’s the best clue that you’ve developed a winner recipe? To me, it’s when friends ask me to bring that dish to a potluck or party. My friend Jennifer’s birthday dinner was coming up and her hubby, Ryan, asked me to bring “your rice and mushroom dish.”
The nice thing about this side dish is that you can serve it hot or room temp so it works for dinner or for a potluck where you might not be able to warm it up (picnic etc). It does keep well covered in a low (200 degree) oven for up to an hour or so if needed.
Bringing a side dish with wild and brown rice gives people a healthier alternative to heavier potato or starch dishes. The mushrooms make it earthy and flavorful. If you don’t want to deal with the shiitakes, using all button mushrooms works just fine.
Makes 8 servings, each approximately 136 calories, 7 grams fat, 18 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 2 grams protein; 4 WW Points +
Ingredients:
2 C (uncooked) wild and brown rice, prepared using mushroom water (see below)
TBSP fresh lemon juice
TBSP good balsamic vinegar
3 TBSP chopped fresh basil, divided
2 TBSP butter, divided
2 TBSP olive oil, divided
1 cup dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated, stems removed, chopped
2 cups button mushrooms, cleaned, chopped
2 cups onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
Rinse the shiitakes and place in boiling water and let sit covered for 45 minutes. Pour off and save the soaking water and rinse the shiitakes again. Remove stems and discard. Chop shiitakes and button mushrooms.
While shiitakes soak, prepare rice according to package directions, using the mushroom soaking liquid (add additional water if needed). Make sure to discard the last ounce or so of soaking liquid where the grit will have settled.
Melt 1 TBSP butter in 1 TBSP olive oil over medium-medium low heat and cook onions until almost caramelized, about 25 minutes, then add garlic. Continue cooking another 5-10 minutes until onions fully caramelized and garlic has softened.
While onions cook, melt remaining butter in remaining olive oil and add mushrooms and 2 TBSP basil. Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes or until almost fully brown and softened. Add balsamic vinegar and 1 tsp kosher salt and continue cooking another 3-5 minutes. Stir in lemon juice.
Add mushrooms, onion/garlic mixture and rice together. Stir in remaining basil and salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot or room temperature.
What do your friends always ask you to bring to parties?
Printable Recipe