Wild Rice with Dried Cherries

I made this back in October during the move as I was trying to clean out the pantry. I accompanied the rice with a simple pan-seared chicken breast that I seasoned with salt and pepper. Sometimes wild rice recipes are called "wild rice stuffing" or something like that but I'm not sure you could "stuff" this in anything without having it turn to mush, so I think of it as simply a jazzed up wild rice.



(2-1 ratio broth to rice, erring on the side of a bit more broth)
3 c chicken broth
1.25-1.5 c uncooked wild rice
1 medium onion (about 1 c), diced
3 medium celery stalks, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c dried cherries
olive oil, salt and pepper

1. Saute onions and celery in olive oil until tender. Season with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.

2. Add wild rice and mix together. Wait another minute before stirring in broth. I think this brings out a nutty flavor in the rice.

3. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cover and reduce to low. Simmer for 30 minutes.

4. Add dried cherries and continue cooking covered on low until all liquid is absorbed and rice is still fluffy. This may result in total cooking time being 45 min to an hour. If you over cook, then the result is mush, which might not be unpleasant tasting, but will lack nice consistency.

5. Adjust seasoning, as desired

Serves 4-6