“Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder”, but “excitement is in the mouth of the taster”.

I think the beauty of a fresh snowfall is wondrous to behold yet you cannot eat it. Well, that’s not true, you could pour fresh maple syrup over it, but that’s another story.

Here we are coming into Mozokas, the moose-hunting moon of March and Zogalikas, the maple sugar-making moon of April. Lovely as it can be, I think we have all grown weary of winter for this year. And, I believe we also grow weary of plain old, plain old winter foods, even the comfort type. Time to bring it up a notch and I think this recipe is perfect to get our tired and bored taste buds out of their doldrums.

WILD RICE & SHELLFISH BAKE

Nutty tasting wild rice is a perfect combination for sweet shellfish like scallops and shrimp.

1 1/2 cups wild rice

2 1/2 cups water OR chicken broth

3 cups fresh sliced mushrooms (wild or domestic)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups of chopped onions

1/4 cup flour

2 cups milk

1/2 pound each of scallops and shrimp

1/2 cup white wine

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon fresh minced sage

1 tablespoon parsley, chopped fresh or dried

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 pinch of grated nutmeg

In a heavy pot on the stove, simmer the wild rice for 30-40 minutes, adding water or broth as needed until the grains are tender and partially split. When done, set aside. Sauté the onions and mushrooms in the olive oil in a sauté pan until softened, add shellfish. Slowly add the wine and let it cook away the alcohol. Add cold milk to the flour and mash out any lumps. Cook until mixture starts to thicken, then add seasonings and wild rice, stir to blend and spoon into a greased baking dish.

Preheat oven to 350. Bake for 30 minutes.

The dish can be very elegant when served with mashed butternut squash or, better still, fresh picked asparagus.