Wild Things

This hearty, earthy recipe is good served with meat, but that’s hardly necessary. Ultimately, it’s a showcase for morels. If you have to buy them and they’re really expensive you can make up the difference with regular button mushrooms, or other wild mushrooms like oyster or porcini.

For a sumptuous, saucy alternative, skip the wild rice and almonds, and add a cup of heavy cream instead. Serves 8

2 cups wild rice

1/2 pound fresh morels (or morels cut with other mushrooms), sliced in half from tip to stem

1 medium sized onion, chopped 8 tablespoons butter

I cup cheap, dry sherry or dry vermouth (failing those, dry white wine)

1 cup chicken stock

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried sage (or a tablespoon fresh)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Juice and zest of a quarter lemon

1 cup slivered or sliced almonds

1 large bunch of parsley

A handful of chives or ramps

Add the rice and six cups of water to a pot with a tight fitting lid. Cook on medium until the water is gone and the rice is soft and splitting open, about 50 minutes. If it’s still kind of hard and crunchy, add another cup of water and cook for another 15 minutes or so. Turn it off and let it sit with the lid on.

While the rice cooks, melt the butter in a pan on medium-high heat. Add the onions, and layer the morels on top. After about five minutes, as the onions start to cook down, give it a stir. When the onions turn translucent and the pan starts to dry out, about 10 minutes, add half of the sherry

(or vermouth), as well as the stock, nutmeg, black pepper, salt, sage, soy sauce, lemon juice and zest. Simmer for about 20 minutes on medium. Add the other half cup of vermouth, and simmer for 10 more minutes with the lid on.

While it simmers, trim and chop the parsley and chives.

When most of the liquid has evaporated from the pan, add the rice and stir it around. Add the almonds and give it another stir.

Turn off the heat, stir in the parsley and chives, and serve.