(This picture does not do the pink color any justice.. Damn you, artificial lighting!)

Beetroot Chévre Risotto

The beet and goat cheese combination is honestly one of my favorites. Especially in salads.. My mom and I first tried it at this cute little café called Rouge in Rittenhouse square, Philly. They served it in this fresh homemade lemon vinaigrette with fried balls of goat cheese (Crispy on the outside, soft and melty on the inside..Seriously salivating right now). So I thought, why not try the same pairing in a risotto?! Honestly, I was so excited for this one and ended up being a little disappointed. The chévre and beet tasted so good together and the walnuts added so much character to the dish. However, I overcooked the rice a bit because I was too scared of undercooking it and I think I skimped out a little on the spices. I have modified the recipe below to rectify the areas I felt I was lacking but please feel free to make alterations where you need to!

What you’ll need…

• 1 1/2 cups Arborio risotto rice
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• 2-3 sprigs of parsley
• 2-3 sprigs of rosemary
• 1 onion
• 2 Tbsps lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1-2 stems of Thyme
• 2.5 oz goat milk Chévre
• 1 beetroot
• 3 cups milk
• Handful walnuts
• salt to taste

Put it all together!

– Begin by Preheating your oven to 400 degrees. Wrap beet in foil and bake for 40 minutes

– While beet is baking, finely chop garlic, onion, and herbs

– In a pot, sauté onion and garlic until onions are translucent (Don’t you love the smell of frying onions and garlic?)

– Lower heat, add in thyme and rosemary and continue to stir till fragrant

– Remove beet from oven and peel off skin.

– Chop beet into small cubes

– Mix in uncooked rice and beet and stir for about 2 minutes allowing grains to lightly brown

– Pour in milk and stir mixture. Add salt, increase heat, and bring to a boil (You may need to taste the rice a few times until you get the consistency right)

– Once cooked, lower heat and stir in chévre, walnuts, lemon juice, and parsley

– Serve in a lighter colored plate or bowl (really makes the pink POP 🙂 ), garnish with parsley, and Enjoy!