Homemade Giardiniera

Want to preserve your fall harvest a little longer? Make giardiniera! It’s a tangy Italian condiment made with garden veggies, hot peppers, garlic, and spices, marinated in vinegar and olive oil. It makes a great hostess gift or delicious chopped finel…

Want to preserve your fall harvest a little longer? Make giardiniera! It's a tangy Italian condiment made with garden veggies, hot peppers, garlic, and spices, marinated in vinegar and olive oil. It makes a great hostess gift or delicious chopped finely and added to sandwiches!

Cardamom Apple Cake

This apple cake is our favorite fall dessert! Buttery and moist with a crackly top, loaded with sweet tart apples, and a hint of cardamom.

This apple cake is our favorite fall dessert! Buttery and moist with a crackly top, loaded with sweet tart apples, and a hint of cardamom.
This apple cake is our favorite fall dessert! Buttery and moist with a crackly top, loaded with sweet tart apples, and a hint of cardamom.

Sumac Chicken

This Sumac Chicken recipe with lemon and potatoes is bursting with flavor! A delicious one-pan Middle Eastern dinner your whole family will love!

This Sumac Chicken recipe with lemon and potatoes is bursting with flavor! A delicious one-pan Middle Eastern meal your whole family will love!
This Sumac Chicken recipe with lemon and potatoes is bursting with flavor! A delicious one-pan Middle Eastern dinner your whole family will love!

Best Wild Rice Soup

This wild rice soup recipe is impossibly creamy, packed with flavor and full of tender veggies and hearty rice. Everyone…

This wild rice soup recipe is impossibly creamy, packed with flavor and full of tender veggies and hearty rice. Everyone asks for the recipe—it’s that good.

Wild rice soup

This wild rice soup is pretty incredible, if we do say so ourselves. It’s creamy, it’s cozy, it’s savory—and yet somehow, it’s made 100% of plants. You’ll swear that somehow a little heavy cream got mixed in, but it’s all wholesome, nourishing vegetables.

It’s perfectly seasoned, and you might not be able to stop eating it. Over the years, it’s been made and loved by hundreds of readers. Per my sister, who we made it for first (and who makes it regularly to this day): “This is really the best soup ever.”

“This soup is the bomb! I’ve made it many times for my family over the past couple of years.” -Lisa

“This soup is a 10/10!!! It’s rich, flavorful, and comforting. My whole family loved it!” -Jessica

“This recipe is amazing! I’ve made this several times and both me and my husband are obsessed!” -Sonja W.

How to make wild rice soup

This wild rice soup takes about 1 hour to make, but it’s a healthy dinner recipe that is 100% worth the effort. Since most of that time is hands off, it works as an easy dinner idea, too! Our secrets to how to make the best wild rice soup:

  • Use cashews. Blended cashews can stand in for dairy! You’ll let them soak while the soup simmers. Then you’ll take 2 cups of the soup out, veggies and all, and blend it with the soaked cashews. It makes for the creamiest base, and you’ll swear there’s dairy in it. (For a nut allergy, go to Wild Rice Mushroom Soup.)
  • Add white beans and mushrooms. Because there’s no chicken in it (sorry, meat lovers!), this wild rice soup features white beans as a plant-based protein. It’s a unique addition and seriously good. Mushrooms also bring in big flavor and texture.
  • Simmer until the rice pops. Wild rice notoriously takes quite a while to cook: upwards of 50 minutes. You’ll cook this soup until most of the rice grains burst and are tender. It might feel like a long time, but it’s important that the rice is perfectly tender.
Wild rice soup

Ways to serve wild rice soup

What to pair this wild rice soup with? We first made this soup for a dinner party in honor of my sister, who had just moved back to the US from living abroad. It was delicious paired with a fresh salad, a signature cocktail, and crusty bread. Here’s how we served it:

Instant Pot variation

If you have an Instant Pot, this soup is modeled after our Instant Pot Wild Rice Soup one of our most fan-favorite recipes. Head to that recipe to make this using a pressure cooker.

Dietary notes

This wild rice soup recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.

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Wild rice soup

Best Wild Rice Soup (Family Favorite!)


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4.6 from 39 reviews

  • Author: Sonja Overhiser
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 55 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 6 to 8
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Description

This wild rice soup recipe is impossibly creamy, packed with flavor and full of tender veggies and hearty rice. Everyone asks for the recipe—it’s that good.


Ingredients

  • ½ cup cashews*
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 2 celery ribs
  • 3 medium carrots
  • 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 8 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 cup wild rice (not a wild rice blend)
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 2 15-ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons dried sage
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce, tamari, or liquid aminos

Instructions

  1. Place the cashews in a bowl and cover them with water. Leave them to soak while you make the recipe.
  2. Dice the onion. Thinly slice the celery. Cut the carrot into rounds. Slice the mushrooms. Mince the garlic.
  3. Add the olive oil to a Dutch oven. Add the onion, celery and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until lightly browned. Add mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add garlic, thyme and oregano and stir for 2 minutes.
  4. Add the broth, wild rice, 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper. Bring to a simmer. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Then add the beans (drained and rinsed), and continue to simmer uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes more, or until rice breaks open.
  5. Using a liquid cup measure, carefully remove 2 cups of the hot soup (including broth, veggies and rice) to a blender. Add 1 cup water. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender, along with the dried sage. Blend on high for about 1 minute until creamy. Then pour the creamy mixture back into the soup.
  6. Add the soy sauce and the remaining ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Taste, and adjust seasonings as desired. Garnish with fresh ground pepper.

Notes

*We used raw cashews. If your cashews are salted, you may need to adjust and add a little less salt at the end. For a nut allergy, go to Wild Rice Mushroom Soup.

  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Plant Based

A few more soup recipes

Here are a few more soup recipes we’d recommend to embrace the season:

Castelvetrano Olive Tapenade

This green olive tapenade is made with buttery Castelvetrano olives, loads of fresh herbs, lemon zest, garlic, and Aleppo chili flakes bathed in extra virgin olive oil. Your focaccia bread will thank you.

This green olive tapenade is made with buttery Castelvetrano olives, loads of fresh herbs, lemon zest, garlic, and Aleppo chili flakes bathed in extra virgin olive oil. Your focaccia bread will thank you.

Best Focaccia Bread Recipe

This is the best focaccia bread recipe we’ve ever tried! Golden and airy with a crispy bottom, topped with flaky sea salt and rosemary. Recipe from Alexandra’s Kitchen!

Hands down, this is the best focaccia bread recipe we've ever made! Topped with flaky sea salt and fresh rosemary, it's golden and airy with a crispy bottom. Easy to make. Vegan.
This is the best focaccia bread recipe we've ever tried! Golden and airy with a crispy bottom, topped with flaky sea salt and rosemary. Recipe from Alexandra's Kitchen!

Apple Cider Sangria

Here’s the ideal fall cocktail: apple cider sangria! This cozy drink pairs apple cider with red wine, orange and cinnamon.…

Here’s the ideal fall cocktail: apple cider sangria! This cozy drink pairs apple cider with red wine, orange and cinnamon. You’ll be amazed by how it tastes cozy and refreshing all at once.

Fall sangria recipe

Why we love this recipe

When the air gets a chill and you start pulling on chunky knit sweaters…guess what? You don’t have to stop drinking sangria! Yes, red sangria and white sangria are usually reserved for summer months. But there are creative spins on this Spanish drink so that you can drink it all year long.

Try this apple cider sangria! It pairs the cozy flavors of fall with dry red wine to make a Spanish-style autumnal spin on this drink. Add a hint of apple cider, and it’s a flavor-packed drink that is the best for fall parties!

Ingredients for apple cider sangria

This apple cider sangria is not a traditional Spanish recipe—it simply takes elements of the classic way to make this drink. I lived in Spain in university and in the process fell in love with its cuisine. I fully believe in the traditional Spanish way to make sangria: American versions are much too sweet!

Sangría is a wine punch that originates from Spain. The classic version is made with red wine and chopped fruit, and often orange juice or brandy. In Spain white sangria is also popular, and there are a myriad of other not-so-traditional spins like rosé sangria, watermelon sangria, etc. This apple cider sangria is a creative variation, but it’s solidly inspired by the Spanish way to make it. Here are the ingredients in this apple cider sangria:

  • Fruit: apple, pear, orange
  • Sugar
  • Cinnamon
  • Dry red wine
  • Apple cider or sparkling apple cider
How to make apple cider sangria

Best wine to use for apple cider sangria

All you need is a bottle of dry red wine for this apple cider sangria! Any dry red will do, of course! Some of the best varietals for this type of sangria are:

  • Rioja Tempranillo
  • Garnacha (Grenache grown in Spain)
  • Malbec
  • Pinot Noir

How to make sangria…the Spanish way

The way we make all of our sangria recipes is a method is inspired by our favorite Spanish chef, Jose Andres. Chef Andres is from Spain and started many successful restaurants here in the US. The “Spanish” way to make this apple cider sangria is this:

  • Macerate fruit for 1 hour: Mix the sangria fruit with sugar and cinnamon, and let it stand at room temperature and break down. This helps the fruit flavors permeate the wine even more.
  • Add liquids: Add the red wine.
  • Serve with apple cider: When serving, pour half the glass with apple cider and half with the red wine mixture.
Apple cider sangria

Variation: sparkling apple cider

There’s a non-Spanish spin to this apple cider sangria, but it’s a tasty way to enhance the cider flavor! Here’s what to know:

  • Pour half of the glass cider, then half red wine (or mix in a pitcher!). This makes for a beautiful two-toned drink. If you’re serving for a crowd, you can simply combine the cider with the red wine in a large pitcher.
  • Sparkling apple cider adds lightness and bubbles. It’s traditional in Spain to serve sangria with soda water: sparkling apple cider mimics the fizziness.

Don’t forget to eat the fruit

A fun part about this apple cider sangria is that you don’t have to let the fruit go to waste! When you serve it, you can also provide skewers for your guests. Then you can eat the wine-soaked fruit from your drink using the skewers! It’s a nice “dessert” or palate refresher after a meal.

Apple cider sangria recipe

More sangria variations

There are lots of types of sangria outside of this apple cider sangria: one for every occasion and season! Here are some of our favorites:

More fall drinks

Go for Mulled Wine, Mulled Cider or Hot Apple Cider to keep things warm and cozy. Or try our Apple Cider Bourbon Cocktail or Apple Cider Mimosa for cocktails with an apple cider spin. See all of our fall drinks, here!

Dietary notes

This apple cider sangria recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.

Frequently asked questions

What kind of apples should I use for my apple cider sangria?

Any crisp eating apple will work beautifully! Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, and Granny Smith are all great choices. You can even use a mix of varieties for more complex flavor.

What are some good garnishes for apple cider sangria?

Cinnamon sticks are a classic choice! Star anise, thin apple slices, and fresh cranberries also make lovely garnishes.

Can I use a different type of wine?

You can use a dry white wine like Pinot Grigio if you prefer, you can use other whites like Sauvignon Blanc or even a dry rosé. Just avoid anything too sweet, as the apple cider already adds sweetness.

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Fall sangria recipe

Apple Cider Sangria


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No reviews

  • Author: Sonja Overhiser
  • Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
  • Yield: 10
Save Recipe

Description

Here’s the ideal fall cocktail: apple cider sangria! This cozy drink pairs apple cider with red wine, orange and cinnamon.


Ingredients

  • 1 apple
  • 1 pear
  • 1/2 orange
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 750 ml bottle dry red wine, such as Rioja
  • 1 750 ml bottle sparkling cider or apple cider
  • Optional garnishes: Cinnamon stick, rosemary sprig, remaining orange slices

Instructions

  1. Thinly slice the apple, pear, and orange. Place them into a medium bowl and stir in the sugar and cinnamon. Transfer to a large pitcher. Allow to stand for 20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
  2. Pour in the red wine. Stir and refrigerate for 1 hour, or as long as 4 hours. (Don’t go beyond 4 hours or the fruit texture starts to degrade.)
  3. To serve, fill a glass with ice. Fill halfway with sparkling apple cider or apple cider, then halfway with red wine mixture (or you can pour them both together in a pitcher). Garnish with cinnamon stick, rosemary or orange slices. When you’ve polished off the sangria, you can snack on the sweetened fruit.
  • Category: Drink
  • Method: Stirred
  • Cuisine: Cocktail
  • Diet: Vegan

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Easy to make and loaded with flavor, this cold noodle salad with cucumber and chili crisp satisfies all our spicy umami cravings in one delicious bite! Vegan.
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