A Risotto with Roasted Beets and Tomatoes.
I made my Ruby Red Risotto yesterday because I happen to have an abundance of organic beets from a share I bought from my local CSA farm! The beet is an enormously healthy vegetable, building our red blood cells and cleansing the liver. My Ruby Red Risotto is the perfect vegetarian entrée or side dish to start out a healthy new year! Roasting the beets brings out their depth of flavor, so please don’t skip this step; you can roast them anytime of the day, let them cool and chop them up and reserve them in a bowl to make the risotto later in the day! No matter how you decide to put this dish together, my Ruby Red Risotto will surely become one of your favorite rice dishes!
7-9 whole organic beets, scrubbed
(wrap in aluminum foil and roast them at 400 degrees Fahrenheit undisturbed for 1 hour, let cool then roughly chop them, reserve in a bowl)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 organic onion, peeled and chopped
4 organic garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
1+ teaspoons red pepper flakes
Generous amount Himalayan salt
1/2 teaspoon ground veggie pepper (Frontier)
3 tablespoons dried organic oregano leaves
1/2 cup dried organic parsley leaves
1&1/2 cup Carnaroli or Arborio rice
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 can organic cherry tomatoes
6-7 cups boiling water
1&1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup unsalted butter and a drizzle of olive oil to finish
Heat the oil in a large frying pan or chef’s pan to medium high
Add onion and garlic and cook until softened
Stir in all the seasonings
Add the rice and stir, cook until rice is pearly
Stir in the wine
Add the reserved beets and tomatoes
Stir and reduce temperature to medium low simmer
Stir in 2 cups boiling water, when rice has absorbed the liquid add another 2 cups and repeat
Keep stirring and don’t let the rice stick to the pan, if it does just add more boiling water and scrape, it will loosen
Remove pan from heat when rice is cooked through
Stir in the parmesan cheese and butter
Finish with a drizzle of olive oil
Enjoy my Ruby Red Risotto as a stand alone vegetarian entrée or as a side to any protein of choice. Serve with a radicchio salad and dry wine! Just delicious!
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