Minnesota Wild Rice Soup

Rinse wild rice, place in a small saucepan and add 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes or just until the grains split open. Do not let your pan run out of water. The only thing that smells worse than wild rice boiling is wild rice burning!

In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add finely minced onion and mushrooms. While the onion and mushrooms saute, finely dice 1 rib of celery into the pot. Allow onion, mushroom and celery to cook for several minutes until the mushrooms release their delicious liquid, then add minced garlic. Cook for another minute or two until the garlic starts to turn color, then add flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until your roux is a nice golden brown color.

Slowly add the chicken stock (a good brown homemade stock really makes this soup so delicious!).

Once all the stock is in the pot, bring to a boil and add carrots, potatoes and salt. Simmer covered for 10 minutes.

Add remaining cooked rice, toasted almonds and half-and-half (and sherry, if you choose).

Bring soup up to serving temperature. Garnish with some fresh chopped chives, and serve with a warm breadstick!

Enjoy!