Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup sweet onions chopped
sea salt
Pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
8 ounces cremini mushrooms
2 ounces wild mushrooms
1 Honeycrisp apple, thinly slice
2 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme, plus more for serving
2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine or more chicken broth
2 cups wild rice
1/2-1 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs cut into bite-size pieces
2 cups baby spinach
1 1/2 cups Gruyère cheese, shredded
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Melt the butter and olive oil in a large, oven safe skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring often until the onion is soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic, the cremini mushrooms and the wild mushrooms, cook another 5 minutes or until the mushrooms are caramelized. Stir in the apples and thyme and cook another minute longer.
3. Pour in the 2 cups chicken broth and the wine and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the rice and chicken, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 45-55 minutes or until the rice is cooked, if needed, add the remaining 1/2-1 cup broth if the rice feels a little hard still. Remove from the heat and stir in the spinach.
4. Sprinkle the cheese over top the rice and transfer to the oven. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Remove from the oven and serve with fresh thyme. Enjoy!
