Ham and Mushroom Wild Rice Hot Dish

Wild rice plus ham plus cream of mushroom soup add up to one very satisfying dish. Try it whenever you are in the mood for warmth, comfort, and the nostalgia of days gone by.

My aunt who lives in Minnesota, in the same town where my mother graduated high school, gave me a copy of the local church cookbook. It has a whole section of “hot dish” recipes. Minnesota “hot dish” recipes almost always call for canned cream of mushroom and/or cream of celery soup. You might call these cozy dishes “casseroles”, but a good winter (or spring or fall) potluck in Minnesota should have several hot dishes on the table.

And in case you want to warm up with some creamy, rich, comfort food during these chilly months, I’ve created my own version of wild rice hot dish that you can enjoy. It can easily be made gluten free and even dairy free, if you wish. Canned mushroom soup that’s both gluten free and dairy free is nigh impossible to find on shelves, so I made my soup from scratch. My creamy mushroom soup recipe uses cashew milk instead of dairy milk and rice flour instead of wheat flour.

I’ve made this dish several times, and found that canned or boxed cream of mushroom soups also work just fine. There are some specialty brands like Amy’s that offer gluten free creamy soups. So that could be a time saving option, depending on what your dietary requirements are. As long as you’ve got that creamy mushroom sauce blending with the smoky bits of ham, your hot dish should taste as a nice hot dish should.

Ham and Mushroom Wild Rice Hot Dish

Servings: 6 to 8
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Ingredients:

3 cups cooked wild rice blend OR 1 cup cooked wild rice plus 2 cups cooked white or brown rice
1 +1/2 cups cream of mushroom soup, canned OR homemade gluten free dairy free soup
1 cup spinach, mixed greens, or turnip greens, chopped
1 cup (or more) cooked ham, diced1/2 onion, diced
1 to 2 stalks celery, diced
2 to 3 Tablespoons butter, ghee, or dairy free margarine
1 to 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise, optional
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
sea salt and/or black pepper to taste
onion powder, to taste
2/3 cup shredded cheese OR slivered almonds for dairy free

Directions:

Melt butter in a large saute pan. Saute onion and celery until tender. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C).
Stir in greens and cook until just wilted. Remove pan from heat and stir in rice and cream of mushroom soup. Add garlic salt and mayonnaise. Stir until evenly incorporated. Stir in ham. Add salt, pepper, and onion powder to taste.
Transfer hot dish mixture to a greased round, oval, or square 2-quart casserole dish. Top with cheese or almonds. Bake at 350 degrees until hot dish is warmed through and bubbly. Serve warm.