Forget the turkey, just let me eat the stuffing! It’s the best part of the bird, isn’t it? But, packed with bread and butter, it’s not the best thing for you – until now. My gluten-free Wild Rice Chicken Sausage Dressing has all the flavors you love, and is packed with B-vitamins. Feel free to experiment with variations, like adding chunks of apple, celery, or butternut squash.

Ingredients:
2 Tb olive oil
½ cup onion
2 Tb garlic
½ cup dried fruit
¼ tsp cumin
2 cups wild rice
4 cups chicken stock
8 oz chicken sausage*

Prep:
Saute the onions, garlic and dried fruit in the olive oil until onions are tender. Add the rice, chicken stock and chicken sausage. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until rice becomes level with liquid. Once rice and liquid are level, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

*To make vegetarian, use vegetable stock in place of chicken stock and a cup of beans in place of chicken sausage.

Why it’s crazy-good for you:
Not only does this North American native plant harken back to the pilgrim days, wild rice has far more protein, minerals, B vitamins, and folic acid than other grains. It is high in carbs, but is only 83 calories in ½ cup of cooked rice.

*This is a WanderFood Weds post.