Mushroom and Kale Harvest Bowl

Hey Guys!

I’m back with a healthy freezer-friendly meal today! This one is actually pretty simple, just a mushroom saute with kale and pancetta over a bed of mixed wild rice! The addition of loads of fresh thyme and a serious deglazing with white wine helps pack a flavorful punch.

I have to admit I took a lazy kid shortcut and used pre-cubed pancetta (from my mom’s freezer, thanks @Alberta_Allie!) and pre-washed/sliced mushrooms. Sometimes, when I’m trying really hard to stock up a bunch of meals in a short amount of time, the pre-prepped ingredients really help!

$2.30 per serving, serves 8 for $18.43

1 Red Onion, chopped- ~1.20

1 package of cremini mushrooms- $3.98

1 package of white mushrooms- $3.98

1/2 package of cubed pancetta (~75 grams)- $3

10 large stems of kale (priced for frozen)- $3

3 Sprigs of Thyme – $0.39

1 cup wild rice mix – ~$2

1 can cannellini beans- $0.88

Pantry Essentials: garlic, salt, pepper, chili flakes, white wine (sub in stock, a bit of oil or water if you don’t have wine)

Ok. First step is to make your wild rice! Wild rice and wild rice blend actually takes a long time to cook because the shell is still on the rice kernel, and you need time to have it cook thoroughly enough to pop open. Take your 1 cup of rice and 1 3/4ths cup of water and bring to a boil on the stove. You can add butter, a bay leaf, whatever you like to this. Once the rice has come to a boil, lower to a simmer, place the lid on the pot, and set a timer for 45 minutes. When the timer goes off (this’ll be while you’re cooking your mushroom mix), take the pot off the heat and let it sit for an additional ten minutes with the lid on. No peeking! After those ten minutes, you just need to fluff it with a fork and you’re done!

Once you’ve got your wild rice going, slice up your onion and garlic and put it into a pan with olive oil and chili flakes. Get your garlic and onion softening and add in approximately 1/2 a package of pancetta cubes. You can freeze the rest to use in another dish. You want to really cook up these pancetta cubes so that the fat renders out into the pan to cook your mushrooms in.

When everything cooks out, your pan could be looking a bit drier than you’d like for adding in a bunch of sliced mushrooms. Take about a quarter cup of wine and deglaze your pan (if you don’t cook with wine, adding about 2 quarter sized dollops of olive oil or a 1/4 cup of stock will also work). Then, pop your mushrooms in and get them sauteeing!

When your mushrooms are about 2/3 of the way cooked, add your kale into the mix to wilt and your drained and rinsed cannellini beans. Once it’s rendered down, you’re ready to top your wild rice blend with your mushroom mix and enjoy!

If you’re going to freeze this like I did, I just split everything into small freezer-safe dishes and split everything by 8. These defrost awesome!

Do you have a favorite way to enjoy mushrooms? Let me know in the comments below!