By Lisa Viger-Gotte
Michigan Wild Rice Blueberry Salad
A fresh late-summer salad featuring nutty wild rice, juicy blueberries, crisp cucumber, cooling mint, and toasted pecans. Since true Michigan-harvested wild rice is rarely available commercially, use a quality wild rice blend or cultivated wild rice for a similar flavor and texture.
Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 45 minutes (for wild rice) Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 6
Serving Size: About 1¼ cups per serving
Ingredients:
For the Salad:
1 cup uncooked wild rice blend
3 cups water or vegetable broth
11/2 cups fresh blueberries
1 large cucumber, diced
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
For the Dressing:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions:
Rinse the wild rice blend thoroughly.
Combine rice and water (or broth) in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until tender, about 40–45 minutes. Drain any excess liquid and cool completely.
In a large bowl, combine the cooled rice, blueberries, cucumber, mint, pecans, and green onions.
Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.
Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to combine.
Chill for 30 minutes before serving for the best flavor.
Notes: Substitute dried cherries or cranberries for some of the blueberries for a more traditional Great Lakes flavor profile. Fresh basil can be used in place of mint. This salad keeps well in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Creamy Wild Rice and Corn Chowder
Sweet summer corn, hearty wild rice, and tender vegetables come together in this creamy vegan chowder. Finished with fresh chives, it’s rich and comforting while still feeling light enough for late summer meals.
Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes Total Time: 55 minutes Servings: 6
Serving Size: About 1½ cups
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked wild rice blend
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups fresh corn kernels (about 5–6 ears)
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup unsweetened plant milk
1/2 cup raw cashews
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh chives, finely chopped
Recipe Prep: Cook wild rice blend according to package directions.
Instructions:
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.
Add the onion, celery, and carrot. Cook for 5–7 minutes until softened.
Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Add the corn, vegetable broth, thyme, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
Blend the soaked cashews with the plant milk until completely smooth.
Transfer about 2 cups of the soup mixture to a blender and blend until creamy. Return the blended soup to the pot.
Stir in the cashew cream and cooked wild rice.
Simmer for 5–10 minutes until heated through and slightly thickened.
Remove from heat and stir in most of the chives, reserving a small amount for garnish.
Stir in the lemon juice and serve hot topped with the remaining fresh chives.
Notes: Fresh sweet corn provides the best flavor, but frozen corn works well when fresh is unavailable. For a thicker chowder, blend a larger portion of the soup before returning it to the pot. Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for up to four days.
Related Content:
It’s almost Solstice, and I am in the Irish Hills at the Great Lakes Foragers Gathering. Now fourteen years old, the Gathering has grown from twelve people sitting down to a foraged dinner to a community of 350—the largest east of the Mississippi. Mifsud, Boyd, and Elaina Sims are all organizers of the Gathering as well as foragers in their own right. We sit in a long open-sided roofed structure overlooking a grass-swathed hollow dotted with tents and scattered groups of people while I interview them. Along the rim of the hollow, I spot vendors with plants, glassware, salves, baskets, jewelry, ceramics, and a long line in front of a bakery. A steaming pot sits in the middle of a stone-rimmed fire circle at the center of the depression.