Wild Rice Mushroom Soup - Instant Pot Style

My Instant Pot shyness is gone - I’m loving it! Last weekend I was hungry for wild rice soup - not the kind with cream and milk, the kind that is tasty and won’t kill me. We were at a family function a few weeks ago and my sister in law made wild rice soup - vegetarian and regular. The vegetarian was good (she used almond milk) but the regular had that creamy look and feel that I love. I also wanted it to be a quick recipe, because I had other things to do.

Enter Instant Pot - put everything in, run through 1 yoga practice with Adrienne, add stovetop to pot and dinner is ready. This is yummy, earthy, middle-of-a-Minnesota-winter wild rice soup.

Thanks to Lindsey at A Pinch of Yum for this delicious recipe. My version is a little different - I've veganized it -  but not too different. 

In the Instant Pot

5 medium carrots, chopped

5 stalks celery, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked wild rice - real wild rice not a blend

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced - I used a combination of portabella and white

4 cups vegetable broth

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning or a seasoning that contains sage, oregano 

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

On the Stovetop

6 tablespoons vegan “butter”

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 cups almond milk 

Instructions

Instant Pot: Put all the ingredients in the first list into the Instant Pot. Cook for 45 minutes (manual, high pressure). Release steam using the valve on top.

Stovetop: When the soup is done, melt the vegan butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour. Let the mixture cook for a minute or two to remove the floury taste. Whisk the milk, a little bit at a time, until you have a smooth, thickened sauce. Throw a little salt in there for good measure.

Together: Mix the creamy sauce with the soup in the instant pot. It’s Mushroom Wild Rice Soup!

Southwest Sweet Potatoes - and the Instantpot helped!

The holidays are over, the tree is on the curb and the decorations are back in the closet - we’re ready for a new year! This year Santa brought me an Instantpot, which I’ve been slowly getting to know. I’ve done test drive with water and on Sunday I did sweet potatoes, which were the base of our southwest sweet potato dish. 

I have to say they were pretty easy and they turned out perfectly. For 2 medium sweet potatoes, I added 1.5 cups of water, put in the rack and cooked them for 18 minutes - done. My only complaint is that I can’t “see” what’s going on. I’ve been cooking for 40+ years and I rely on sight and smell - so this is new for me, and I’m not good at having faith :-).

Sweet potatoes are one of our favorite dishes and generally I substitute them for white potatoes when it makes sense. They are an excellent source of the plant form of vitamin A, an essential fat soluble vitamin that is critical in maintaining eye health and is essential for immune function.

I was looking for something different from a spice perspective and we had all of the ingredients in our pantry. It took about 35 minutes from start to finish to make dinner, which somedays is all the time I’m willing to spend on cooking. In theory this recipe is for 2 but I will say it depends on the size of the sweet potatoes. I cooked 2 medium sized potatoes and we had enough for 2 dinners.

Ingredients

1 avocado, roughly chopped

½ c cilantro leaves and stems, roughly chopped and packed

2 medium sweet potatoes

1 yellow onion - diced

1½ tsp cumin

¼ tsp smoked paprika

½ tsp salt (omit or reduce if your beans or corn are salted)

1 c cooked black beans

1 c cooked corn kernels

1/2 cup chopped grape tomatoes

1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

Place 1.5 cups of water in Instant pot, place 2 sweet potatoes on rack. Cover and cook on high pressure for 18 minutes. 

While potatoes are cooking saute 1 medium onion until translucent. Add spices, corn, black beans cook until hot. Toss in sliced tomatoes, remove from heat, cover and set aside. 

When potatoes are done, remove from pot, slice in half lengthwise (Use oven mitts to keep from burning your hands!), and slightly mash. Add onion/bean/corn mixture, and top with cilantro and cheese. Bake 375 for 10 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven, top with sliced avocado and eat!

We served it with a spinach, orange and beet salad topped with a curry fig dressing. 

Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous new yearI!