Wild Rice and Mushroom Dressing

Darling daughter #2 researched several recipes from Food and Wine magazine to create this wonderfully rich vegetarian dressing.  A few tweaks here and there and some on-the-spot improvising made this a fantastic addition to our thanksgiving dinner.  Absolutely delicious.

Cook the wild rice according to the package instructions substituting veggie stock and bay leaf for the water.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the mushrooms and cook over moderately high heat until lightly browned and beginning to soften.  Stir in the shallots, garlic, celery, onion, and thyme.  Reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are soft (but not too) about 10 minutes.  Add the wine and simmer until almost completely reduced.  Add 1½ cups of the stock and boil until reduced and thickened (about 15 minutes).  Salt and pepper to taste.

Place the toasted, diced bread into a large bowl.  Add the cooked rice, veggie mixture, 2 cups veggie stock, cream, and salt and pepper.  Stir in the eggs and mix well. 

Spoon the dressing into a greased (cooking spray works fine) glass baking dish.  At this point the dressing can be refrigerated overnight, but should be brought back up to room temperature before baking.

Cover the dressing with tinfoil and bake for 45 minutes.  Then remove foil and continue to bake for at least an additional 15 minutes, or until dressing is browned and bounces back to the touch.