Wild Rice Soup

With my baking weekend coming up this weekend, I figured I should actually write down my wild rice soup recipe as I always make it from memory. This recipe started based on the Byerly's recipe and over the past 15 years has morphed into something that is so good that it is hard for me to even eat any other wild rice soup. My mother in law taught me the recipe about 8 years ago and I have added and changed things since then, so here is how I make it.

1 pound (I use nitrite free deli ham or leftover Christmas/Easter Ham)
1 large onion, diced
4-6 cloves pressed garlic
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons brown rice flour
1+ quarts chicken stock (homemade or organic boxed)
3-4 cups cooked wild rice
2-3 large grated carrots
1 bag fresh spinach, chopped (or part of a box of frozen spinach)
roasted almonds, chopped (I use about a cup)
1 pint half and half (organic preferred)

Heat butter and Coconut Oil in large stockpot. Add onions and saute about 5 minutes. Cube up ham into small pieces and add to onions. Saute another few minutes then add the garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Add flour and stir into mixture. Cook for two minutes so that the flour doesn't have a "pasty" taste. Add the chicken stock, grated carrots and cooked wild rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add half and half and cook for 20 minutes. Add chopped spinach and almonds, heat through and serve.

You can also add mushrooms or substitute chicken for the ham. I find that this soup freezes great and tastes just as good after being frozen. I have experimented with making this soup in a crock pot and found that the 1/2 and 1/2 curdled, so I wouldn't recommend using a crock pot. I usually double this recipe and it makes enough soup for 10 meals (for two people).