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More Recipes

November 2011

More Meals

Family Meal

White Bean Risotto with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Spinach & Parmesan

Serves 6

Once you get the hang of risotto, you can make it however you want. Consider alternatives such as asparagus (chop and toss in for the last five minutes of cooking time so it stays crunchy), shrimp or mushrooms (sauté with onions at beginning). It’s fun to play around with different ingredients you think your family will love.

Taken from Spilling the Beans by Julie Van Rosendaal

You'll Need

Olive or canola oil, for cooking
1 Tbsp (15 mL) butter (plus more, if you like)
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cups (500 mL) Arborio (short-grain) rice
6 cups (1.5 L) low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock, warmed
1 cup (250 mL) cooked white beans, or half a 19 oz (540 mL) can, rinsed and drained
2 to 3 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and chopped (optional)
½ to 1 cup (125 to 250 mL) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
1 cup (250 mL) packed fresh spinach leaves, torn or roughly chopped, and/or a small handful of fresh basil, torn or chopped

Meat optional: 1 fresh chorizo or Italian sausage

Prep and Cook

In a medium-large saucepan, heat a drizzle of oil with the butter over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion and sausage (squeezed out of its casing), if you’re using it, until the onion is soft and the sausage is no longer pink (break it up with a spoon). Add the rice and cook for a minute, just to coat the grains with the oily juices.
Add about ½ cup of stock and cook, stirring, until it’s absorbed. Continue adding stock ½ to 1 cup at a time and cook, stirring (it doesn’t have to be constantly, just frequently) until it absorbs the liquid. When it’s all used up (it should take about 30 minutes), the grains should be soft. If they still have a crunchy core, just add a little more water or stock. Add the beans along with the last addition of stock.
When the rice is cooked and it’s nice and creamy, stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, cheese, lemon juice, spinach, and, if you like, another blob of butter. Stir until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts. Serve immediately.

Good to know: Chicken stock is very high in sodium so double check the labels when buying it for your family meal.