Giada’s Brown and Wild Rice Dressing with Mushrooms and Brussels Sprouts from ‘Happy Cooking’

Every week, Yahoo Food spotlights a cookbook that stands out from all the rest. This week’s cookbook is Happy Cooking: Make Every Meal Count…Without Stressing Out by Giada De Laurentiis (Pam Krauss Books). An Emmy Award-winning Food Network star, De Laurentiis is also a Today show correspondent and has her own restaurant, Giada, at The Cromwell Las Vegas. Read more about Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week here.

Photograph by Andrew Purcell

By Giada De Laurentiis

Giada’s Brown and Wild Rice Dressing with Mushrooms and Brussels Sprouts
Serves 8 to 10

Holidays can be a tough time to please everyone, especially if you are trying to accommodate dietary needs. This colorful, flavorful dressing just happens to be gluten-free, but it’s no compromise at all. Be sure to buy plain wild rice, not a pilaf or rice blend.

8 ounces applewood-smoked bacon slices, cut crosswise into ?-inch-wide strips
4? cups low-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
1? cups organic brown rice (I used Lundberg’s short-grain gluten-free; about 8.6 ounces)
1? cups wild rice (about 7.6 ounces)
6 tablespoons (? stick) unsalted butter
2 (10-ounce) bags pearl onions, blanched in boiling water for 2 minutes, then peeled
1? pounds portobello mushrooms, dark gills scraped away and discarded, mushrooms coarsely chopped (7 to 8 cups of ?-inch pieces)
1 pound Brussels sprouts, root ends trimmed and discarded, sprouts halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise (about 4 cups)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
? cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked, and coarsely chopped (optional)

In a large heavy skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of the drippings from the skillet; reserve the skillet with the drippings.

In a large heavy saucepan, combine the broth and 1 tablespoon of the thyme and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the brown rice and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low; cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the wild rice and bring to boil. Reduce the heat to medium low; cover and simmer until all the rice is tender (but still slightly chewy), about 40 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon of the butter to the bacon drippings in the reserved skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the pearl onions and sauté until golden and tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the onions to a small bowl and set aside. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and the mushrooms to the skillet and sauté until the mushrooms are brown and tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Stir the Brussels sprouts into the skillet with the mushrooms and sauté until tender but still bright green, about 5 minutes; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Add the rice mixture, remaining 3 tablespoons butter, remaining 2 tablespoons thyme, and reserved pearl onions to the skillet and toss gently to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer the stuffing to a large bowl. Sprinkle with the bacon and hazelnuts, if desired, and serve.

Reprinted with permission from Happy Cooking: Make Every Meal Count…Without Stressing Out by Giada De Laurentiis (Pam Krauss Books).

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The Secret to Better Brussels Sprouts: Bacon

The Easiest Way to Love Brussels Sprouts

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