Chard Risotto

I'm sure I've said it before, but risotto is the ultimate comfort food for me. It's relaxing to make, and incredibly satisfying to eat. Even a very basic risotto with no meat or vegetables is tasty, but I love bumping it up to a full meal by adding things to it.

I had a gorgeous bunch of rainbow chard, and decided to try my hand at incorporating it into a risotto. The result was magnificent. Incredibly hearty and comforting, and absolutely packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to make me feel good about eating it.

This is a bit more brothy than your typical risotto, but it's not quite a soup. Something about it just felt like if I were coming down with a cold, this would be the recipe to help knock it out of the park.

If you haven't experimented much with chard, I encourage you to let this be your gateway recipe. I think it may have trumped kale as my favorite leafy green. It's softer, like spinach, but it doesn't get mushy when it wilts. I think we'll be seeing it a bit more in this blog, just so you know!

Chard Risotto
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 large onion, chopped
3/4 cups arborio rice
3 cups coarsely chopped rainbow or red chard leaves
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
salt and pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring broth to a simmer in a small pot, and keep warm.

2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in arborio rice to coat with the oil, and then add the chard. It will fill up the pot completely, but be patient and stir carefully until it starts to wilt, about 3 minutes. Add wine and stir. Cook until mostly absorbed, about 2 minutes.

3. Add the broth and stir. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently, until the broth is almost completely absorbed and the rice is starchy and creamy, about 20 minutes. Stir in parmesan and salt and pepper to taste. Serve topped with the scallions.

Enjoy!