3879. CHICKEN BACON WILD RICE SOUP

Serves: 6


3 (10¾ oz) cans chicken broth
2 cups water
½ cup uncooked wild rice, rinsed
½ cup finely chopped green onions
½ cup margarine or butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
⅛ teaspoon pepper
2 cups half and half
1½ cup cubed or shredded cooked chicken or turkey
8 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled
1 tablespoon chopped pimiento
2-3 tablespoons dry sherry, if desired

In a large saucepan, combine chicken broth and water. Add wild rice and onions. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 30-45 minutes (or until rice is tender). Once the rice is cooked, there will be some additional broth - do not drain.

In a medium saucepan, melt margarine, stir in flour, salt, seasoning, and pepper. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until smooth and bubbly.

Gradually stir in half and half with the butter/flour mixture and cook until slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Add this creamy mixture back into the saucepan with the rice/broth. Add remaining ingredients (chicken, bacon, pimiento, and sherry). Heat on low, stirring every once in a while, for at least a half an hour. Do not boil. The mixture will look thin, but the longer you heat the soup, the more the flavors marry and the more it will thicken. This soup is best served after gently heating for an extended period of time (even a few hours) or the next day! For extra flavor, add more poultry seasoning and/or bacon.


bacon recipe source: Lindsay Ostrom, Pinch of Yum (@pinchofyum), January 6, 2012

2259. WILD RICE with BACON, ALMONDS and OYSTER MUSHROOMS

makes 4 servings


2 thick slices cob-smoked bacon
1 medium onion, finely chopped
½ pound fresh oyster (or shiitake) mushrooms, washed, patted dry, and coarsely chopped
1 cup wild rice, washed thoroughly
2 cups chicken broth
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup chopped toasted almonds
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

In a 2-quart flameproof casserole, fry the bacon over moderate heat till crisp, drain on paper towels, and crumble. Add the onion and mushrooms to the fat in the casserole and stir till softened, about 5 minutes. Add the wild rice and stir till well coated. Add the broth and salt and bring to a boil, stirring. Cover the casserole, place in the oven, and bake till the rice is tender but not gummy, about 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest about 10 minutes. Add the bacon, almonds, and pepper, toss till well blended, and serve immediately.


bacon recipe courtesy of: The Bacon Cookbook: More than 150 Recipes from Around the World for Everyone's Favorite Food by James Villas. Wiley, 2007

2219. WILD RICE STUFFING with CRANBERRIES, BACON and PECANS

serves eight


1 1/4 cup wild rice, uncooked
4 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup onion, chopped
1 14-oz can chicken broth
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons dry sherry
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
2 cups fennel or celery, chopped
3/4 cup dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup pecans, chopped and toasted

Rinse wild rice in cold water. Drain well; set aside. In a large saucepan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in saucepan. Drain bacon; set aside. Add onion to saucepan; cook until tender, stirring occasionally. Add wild rice; cook and stir for 3 minutes. Add chicken broth, water, sherry and thyme. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in fennel and dried cranberries. Meanwhile, heat oven to 350 degrees F. Transfer rice mixture to a 2-quart casserole. Cover and bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, stirring once. Stir in pecans and bacon.


bacon recipe courtesy of: The National Pork Board/Pork: Be Inspired

2167. WILD RICE CASSEROLE with BACON

serves six


1/2 lb. bacon, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 cup wild rice
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can mushrooms
pimento (optional) adds color
Accent and seasoned salt

Wash wild rice and place in boiling salted water. Boil about 20 minutes or until partially done, drain. Fry diced bacon; pour off grease as necessary. Leave enough grease to saute onions, celery and green pepper--add when bacon is nearly done. Place in casserole, adding water to cover. Place in medium oven (350 degrees F) for approximately one hour.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Minnesota Wild Rice/C and G Wild Rice, 2803 Harborview Parkway, Superior, Wisconsin 54880

1942. WILD RICE with HAZELNUTS and BACON

makes ten servings


2 1/2 quarts water
2 1/2 cups wild rice (1 pound)
1 1/2 cups hazelnuts (6 ounces)
1/2 pound sliced bacon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds leeks, white and tender green parts, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 celery rib, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped thyme
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the wild rice, cover and cook over moderate heat until tender, about 1 hour. Drain well. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for 15 minutes, or until fragrant. Transfer the nuts to a kitchen towel and let cool, then rub off the skins. Coarsely chop the nuts. In a large, deep skillet, cook the bacon over moderate heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Drain the bacon on paper towels. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat from the skillet. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and the leeks, celery and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and cook over moderate heat until the leeks are tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the wild rice, season with salt and pepper and cook just until warmed through. Stir the toasted hazelnuts, the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and the parsley into the wild rice, sprinkle in the bacon and serve.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Grace Parisi, "Thanksgiving Sides," Food & Wine, November 2000

916. PHEASANT BAKE with BACON

1 cup raw wild rice
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can mushrooms
2 1/2 cups water
water chestnuts
four strips of cooked bacon, cut into squares
2 pheasants, cut up, floured and browned
1 package instant onion soup mix
1 can fried onion toppers

Mix rice, canned soups, water, mushrooms, bacon and water chestnuts in 9x13 glass casserole dish. Add pheasant. Sprinkle with onion soup mix. Cover lightly with foil. Bake for two hours at 300 degrees. Add onion toppers and cook for another 30 minutes.

Pheasant meat is a great alternative to chicken. Try it in soups, hot dishes and other meals that call for chicken. A fall weekend isn’t complete without some wild game, and with dishes like these and so many more, the preparation possibilities are endless for the finest fowl…in our outdoors.


courtesy of: Nodak Outdoors, Bismarck, North Dakota, (877) 572-0923

698. BOBWHITE QUAIL with CHESTNUT, WILD RICE and APPLE STUFFING, BACON, BOUDIN BLANC, BRUSSEL SPROUTS, BLUE PLUM MUSTARD and ROSEMARY

Serves 4

4 ea. bob white quail, boneless
1 c cooked wild rice
2 oz roasted chestnuts, chopped
2 oz dehydrated apples, brunoise
¼ tsp rubbed sage
½ tsp thyme leaves
¼ tsp minced rosemary
½ tsp garlic, minced
12 ea brussel sprouts, stemmed removed and quartered
1 tbl applewood bacon finely minced
1/4 cup chicken stock
4 ea 2 oz boudin blanc sausages or any fowl sausage
4 oz blue plum mustard (see recipe below)
4 oz quail-rosemary jus
pork crepinette
salt and pepper to taste

Remove the breast (french the wing bones) and legs from the carcass of the quail, reserve the carcasses for sauce.

Mix together wild rice, chestnuts, apples and herbs. Season the breasts with salt and pepper; stuff with the rice mixture and wrap the breasts with crepinette and tie.

In a medium hot sauté pan, pan roast the squab breast, rendering the crepinette,

When finished add boudin and baste until golden brown.

Add bacon to the rendered fat from the quail. Cook until crispy, add brussel sprouts, degrease the pan, add chicken stock and reduce to glaze the sprouts.

Place a dollop of plum mustard on a plate, using the back of a spoon or a small palate knife; spread the mustard to desired thickness. Arrange the quail on one end of the mustard, arrange brussel sprouts on the other end. Place boudin on the brussel sprouts. Drizzle quail jus over the quail and on the plate.


Blue Plum Mustard

18 ea blue plums, stones removed
2 c sugar (less/more to desired sweetness)
2 c red wine
1 c violet mustard

In a heavy bottom sauce pot, add plums, sugar and red wine. Simmer mixture for 1 hour and purée in a blender. Place back into the pot simmer to reduce to jam consistency, add mustard and cool.


courtesy of: R.J. Cooper III, Chef de Cuisine, Vidalia Restaurant, 1990 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036, 202.659.1990

282. PHEASANT WILD RICE & BACON SOUP

½ lb. cooked wild rice in chicken stock
7 strips bacon, chopped
½ lb. butter
2 onions, diced
1 bunch celery, diced
1 lb. raw mushrooms, sliced
1 ½ cup flour
3 pheasant breasts
2 quarts chicken stock
1 teaspoons white pepper
1 tablespoons Lawry's Seasoning Salt
1 quart heavy whipping cream

Fry bacon in large pot until brown. Add butter to bacon and grease; melt. Add onions, celery and mushrooms; sauté about 5 minutes. Add flour, stir well and continue to cook and stir another 4-5 minutes. Add raw pheasant and stock; bring to boil. Lower hear and simmer 20 minutes. Add seasoning and heavy cream. Continue to simmer for another 10 minutes; adjust seasoning if necessary. Add wild rice at very end. If too thick, thin down with half-&-half or milk. May want to add a little poultry seasoning.


courtesy of: Halverson Hunts, Kennebec, South Dakota

217. CHESTNUT and BACON STUFFED CHRISTMAS GOOSE

serves six


1 goose, 12 to 14 pounds, thawed if frozen
salt and pepper
grated rind of 2 oranges

Chestnut Stuffing:

6 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cups sliced celery with leaves
2 cup chopped parsley
1 can (17 oz.) whole chestnuts, drained and coarsely broken
4 cups cooked wild rice
1 teaspoon crumbled dried sage
1 teaspoon crumbled dried thyme
1 teaspoon crumbled dried marjoram

Remove giblets from goose. Remove loose fat and reserve for liver toasts. Sprinkle goose inside and out with salt and pepper. Rub with orange rind.

Chestnut Stuffing: Fry bacon in a skillet until crisp. Add onion, celery, and parsley, and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in chestnuts, rice, and herbs. Season to taste with salt.

Stuff goose with mixture. (Do not stuff goose until it is ready to be roasted.) Sew or skewer openings. Place goose breast side up on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 25 minutes per pound.

Place goose on serving platter. Garnish with pine sprigs and sliced blood oranges.


courtesy of: Yankee Magazine, December 1990

75. WILD RICE with HERBS and APPLEWOOD-SMOKED BACON

Serves eight as a side dish


6 slices applewood-smoked bacon, cut crosswise into thin strips
1 cup finely diced red onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups wild rice, rinsed well under cold water and drained
2 1/2 cups water
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 small bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup roasted pine nuts

Cook bacon in a large saucepan with a lid, uncovered, over moderate heat, stirring, until crisp; remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Stir in the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, over moderate heat until golden, about 5 minutes.

Add wild rice, water, broth, bay leaf, and salt. Cover and bring to a boil over moderate heat. Uncover and boil gently without stirring, 45-60 minutes, depending on desired degree of doneness. Drain, add herbs, season well with freshly ground black pepper, and set over lowest possible heat. Dry out for 5 minutes, shaking the pan. Stir in the bacon and pine nuts, and discard the bay leaf. Serve hot.


courtesy of: The Dean & DeLuca Cookbook by David Rosengarten with Joel Dean and Giorgio DeLuca. New York: Random House, 1996, p. 252.