Wild Rice with Sweet Italian Sausage, Mushrooms & Radicchio

The nuttiness of the rice plays wonderfully with the savory sausage and slightly bitter radicchio in this autumn-inspired side dish. It also makes a fantastic stuffing for roasted acorn squash.

Ingredients

8 ounces wild rice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 shallots, thinly sliced

2 cups mushrooms, cleaned and quartered

1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon Wild Fennel Pollen

2 links Sweet Italian Pork Sausage

1 1/2 cups radicchio, shredded

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

Rinse rice under cold water and drain. Place rinsed rice in a medium saucepan and add enough water to cover by _-inch. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover tightly and cook 25-30 minutes. Check liquid halfway through cooking: If grains are starting to look dry, add a couple more tablespoons of water. The rice should be fluffy and all of the liquid should be absorbed.

While rice is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms, shallots and garlic and sautÃ© until the mushrooms start to brown and the shallots soften, about 4-5 minutes. Add sausage, thyme, fennel pollen and radicchio, continue to cook until sausage is cooked through. Add wine and cook for 3-5 minutes until liquid has reduced by half.

Remove from heat and toss with cooked rice and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature.