Red beet risotto topped with goat cheese and fresh beet greens. A simple one pot side dish or meatless main course that is absolutely beautiful.
CSA week one continues with this brilliant red beet risotto topped with goat cheese and beet greens. Last year, beets made several appearances in the CSA and I typically just roast them and put them on salad. I decided to up my game and cook them into risotto for Sunday dinner. These babies had gorgeous greens, so I sliced some of those to top the risotto and add a green contrast to all that red. I also made an escarole salad, using another of my CSA finds this week!
Risotto is one of those dishes that people think is really hard to make. I disagree wholeheartedly. If you can stir, you can make risotto. This one is particularly easy because you add all the liquid at once instead of a little at a time. Don’t fear the risotto people! It’s easy. And yummy. So you should have a go at it.
My favorite this week is still the pasta with asparagus and grilled shrimp, but I will definitely make this risotto again and again.
New box coming Tuesday and I still have some lettuce and escarole to use this week. Stay tuned for more ideas for how to use this beautiful New Jersey produce!
- 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 medium red beets, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 cup arborio or carnaroli rice
- 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
- 3 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock for a vegetarian version)
- 2 oz. goat cheese
- A few beet leaves, thinly sliced
- Melt the butter i a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and beets. Cover and cook for about 7 minutes or until the onion is softened.
- Add the rice and stir. Add the balsamic vinegar and chicken stock and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed and the beets and rice are tender. Adjust seasoning if needed.
- To serve, top with some crumbled goat cheese and some of the beet greens.
Perhaps I didn’t cut the beets small enough, but I don’t believe they were much bigger than 1/2″, and nonetheless they were not soft enough even after half an hour of cooking. I also felt the recipe would benefit from the addition of salt and pepper. It was a gorgeous color, though.
Jennie, sorry the beets didn’t cook through – I’ve made this multiple times without an issue. As for salt and pepper, ALWAYS! The chicken stock I use has salt, but I’d always recommend seasoning to suit your taste. Thanks for your comment.
This may be a silly question, but do you cook the rice before adding it to the mixture?
Not a silly question at all. Nope! Add the dry Arborio and it will cook along with the beets.
This recipe was so yummy
Thanks! It’s one of my favorites!