October is breast cancer awaress month and Jen at Beantown Baker created a challenege 4 years ago called The Power of Pink. The goal is to raise awareness by cooking and blogging pink food in the month of October. My aunt is a breast cancer survivor, and I thought it was important that I became involved. Please head over to her blog if you are interested in participating!
While deciding what to make I was a little stumped. Luckily, I ran across a few recipes for beet risotto online and decided to make my own version. In addition to being pink this risotto is really yummy! Be forewarned that beets a be messy! No nice clothes while preparing this dish! Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 medium beet
1 shallot, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock (vegetable stock for vegetarian)
1 1/2 cup chopped kale
1 Tbl butter
2 Tbl olive oil
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
Scrub the beet removing dirt and grit. Cut the stem of the beet down to 1 1/2 to 2 inches long. Make sure not to cut into the beet because it will bleed out during the boiling process. Place beet in boiling water and cook till tender (about 12 minutes). Remove beet from water and place it into a bowl of ice water. Allow it to sit for about 15 minutes. Remove the beet from water and remove the skin (this can be messy so do it over the sink). Remove stem on chop into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces and set aside.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter to pan; swirl to coat. Add shallots and garlic. Saute till shallots are soft and translucent (2 minutes- careful not to burn garlic). Increase heat to medium, stir in rice, and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in beets and allow any liquid to absorb. Add 1 cup stock and cook 3-5 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly (The stock should sizzle when it hits the pan to make sure you don't keep your heat too low). Add remaining broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of stock is absorbed before adding the next. Before you stir in the final 1/2 cup of stock, add the kale and then the remaining stock.
Stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.