BLT Risotto

Tags

bacon, dinner, recipes, risotto, spinach

I really didn’t know what to do with the 3lb bag of Arborio rice that was given to me by mistake from Fresh Direct, so it sat in my cupboards. Sure, I could make risotto… I mean, that’s what arborio rice is for. But the thought of using it never came to mind until I was looking through a cookbook at Patty’s house.

“Oh, I have been meaning to give that to you…”

A free cookbook! It was Emeril Lagasse’s Sizzling Skillets and One Pot Wonders. Everything about a one pot dinner sounded great to me but when I spotted the BLT Risotto recipe my mind went right to the giant bag of free Arborio Rice.

I had most of the ingredients on hand, so I figured “Why Not?”

I was also nursing a really gnarly hangover and was craving CARBS like crazy. There was no time like the present to 1) make hangover risotto and 2) stop feeling hungover.

Ingredients:

6 cups chicken stock

6 ounces thick cut bacon  1/5 lb thick cut bacon

1 cup onion, diced

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp crushed garlic

1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme 3/4 tsp dried thyme

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

3/4 cups dry white wine

1 lb vine ripened tomatoes 2 vine ripened tomatoes

5 ounces fresh baby spinach

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

2 ounces parm cheese

To start, set the 6 cups of broth in a pot to simmer. It has to be hot in order to do its magic later.

While the broth was simmering, I crisped up the bacon in a large skillet… the same skillet I would be using for the duration of the cooking! One skillet to wash! yesss!

I digress.

When the bacon is nice and crispy, remove it from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside on some paper towels.

Add the onions to newly rendered bacon fat and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon until the onions are translucent. About 4-6 minutes.

Add the garlic, rice, and thyme. Toast up the rice, stirring frequently for 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and allow the rice to absorb it.

When the wine is absorbed, add 1 cup of the chicken stock and gently stir the rice. As the stock evaporates, continue to add 1/2 cup of stock at a time. This should go on for about 15-18 minutes until there is 1/2 cup of stock remaining and the rice is al dente.

Add the tomatoes and allow to cook for two minutes.

After that, add the spinach, bacon, remaining stock, butter and parmesan cheese. Once the spinach wilts, allow it cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Plate and serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Amazing.

And it made for an awesome hangover breakfast!