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!

Spring Risotto

Just when you thought I had finally gotten over my asparagus craze, I go and dump another asparagus-oriented meal at you. Well I'm sorry, but it's spring. I can't help it.

Today I am sharing with you a zesty and hearty risotto. It's a lot like your typical risotto, but with a few interesting twists - most notable of which is the substitution of leeks for what would normally be onions or shallots. Leeks are a seriously under-appreciated flavor source, and I think this recipe showcases just what they can do. The leeks, chives, lemon zest, and parmesan work together to carry the asparagus and let it do its thing. They all join together like a happy little spring time family.

I changed this recipe pretty liberally from the original, but if you want more variety in your veggies you can do what Ina Garten suggested and include peas and fennel, too.

Spring Risotto
adapted from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

2 teaspoons EVOO
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 leek, white and light green parts only, chopped
3/4 cup Arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine
2 cups simmering low-sodium chicken stock
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
zest of one small lemon
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 tablespoons minced fresh chives

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When the butter melts, toss in the chopped leeks and stir. Cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are tender, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for about a minute, to coat with the oil and butter. Add the white wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until most of the wine is absorbed.

3. Begin adding chicken stock, a ladle at a time, stirring frequently and letting each addition be absorbed before adding the next. (About 2-3 minutes between ladles). This process will take about 18 minutes or so.

4. When you only have a couple of ladles full of stock left to add, stir in asparagus and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Continue adding broth until none is left. When it is almost completely absorbed, stir in parmesan and chives.

So simple, so comforting, so good. Enjoy!

Lemony Risotto with Peas and Prosciutto

Risotto is one of my favorite foods, both to make and to eat. Even the basic canvas that you start with is delicious, but there are endless variations. This one is only a couple of steps above the most basic risotto, and you can feel free to tweak it as you see fit. But I can vouch for the recipe as is - incredibly tangy and delicious. In fact ours was a bit *too* tangy so I've reduced the amount of lemon juice in the recipe. I took Giada's lemon risotto and turned it into a main course with the addition of a vegetable (peas) and a protein (prosciutto). It makes for a very flavorful and well-balanced, albeit admittedly carb-filled, meal.

A lot of people think risotto is hard to make. But I promise you, do it once and you'll wonder what all the fuss was about. Sure, you have to devote your undivided attention for about 20 minutes, but if you don't have the patience to do that, well, are you serious? And it's not literally undivided attention - you can step away for a moment here and there. Personally, I find it therapeutic to stand over the stove and stir, watching a meal come together like magic before my eyes. Try this one out - leave out the prosciutto if you want it to be vegetarian - and let me know if you still think risotto is too difficult for a weeknight.

You're welcome.

Lemony Risotto with Peas and Prosciutto
Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis' "Giada's Kitchen"
serves 3-4

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups low-sodium chicken or veggie broth
juice of 1 medium lemon
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large shallot, or 1/2 medium onion, diced
3/4 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 tablespoon creme fraiche or mascarpone cheese
1 tablespoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons roughly chopped prosciutto
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small saucepan, bring broth and about half of the lemon juice to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cover.

2. In a medium, heavy saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Add the shallot or onion and saute until tender but not brown, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the butter. Add the wine and remaining lemon juice and simmer until it has almost completely evaporated, about 3 more minutes.

3. Gradually add the heated broth and lemon juice to the risotto, using a ladle or 1/2 cup measure. After each addition, stir until liquid is almost completely absorbed (if you run your spoon through the pot it should take a moment for the gap to fill back in again) before adding the next 1/2 cup of liquid. Gradually add all the broth in this manner, until the risotto is creamy and tender with a slight bite to it. Add the peas with your final addition of broth. When almost completely absorbed, turn off the heat.

4. Add parmesan, creme fraiche, lemon zest, prosciutto, and salt and pepper to taste, and stir well. Serve topped with parsley.

Enjoy!