Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Before I was diagnosed with my wheat allergy, I was addicted to a local restaurant's creamy chicken and wild rice soup. Anytime I felt the least bit sick or sad or premenstrual or the sun was shining I figured I "deserved" a bowl (or four) of that delicious soup.

It's been years since I've had it. I've been working on recreating that soup and crying every time I failed.

Guess what! I finally didn't fail.


Gluten-Free Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
one medium onion, diced
four carrots, diced
four stalks of celery, diced
sea salt and black pepper
1/2 teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves
one pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs (whole)
2 cups wild rice*
32 ounces chicken broth
2 to 4 cups of water
8 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup milk (or half-and-half, whatever you have on hand)

In a large stockpot, heat up oil. Add onion, carrots and celery, season with salt and pepper, and cook on medium to medium-high heat until softened and onions are close to translucent, about 8 minutes.

Add thyme, bay leaves, chicken, wild rice, chicken broth and two cups of water. Bring to a boil.

Cover pot and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove chicken from the pot and shred or dice meat. Return meat to the pot and add more water if it's really thick. Continue simmering (with the lid on) until rice is tender, about 30 more minutes.

Remove lid and add cream cheese and milk**. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until cream cheese is melted. Taste soup for seasonings and serve!

*I use Lundberg Jubilee (pink label) wild rice mix -- guaranteed to not contain cross-contamination glutens.

**Make it dairy-free! Do not add cream cheese and milk. Or, do what I did and place about half of the soup at this step in a separate pot and add half the amount of cream cheese and milk. This way my husband and I enjoyed the creamy version while our kids, who are allergic to dairy, had the same soup without the allergens.