Risotto with Italian Sausage, Onions and Arugula

Whenever I buy arugula, I always end up with a huge container of the stuff.  For whatever reason, my grocery store only sells it in a quantity that even Popeye couldn’t consume (if he liked arugula instead of spinach).  Last week I used some of it in a tuna and penne salad but still had over half the container left.  Because I’ve been conscious about food waste, I was determined to use every last leaf.  Searching for something to make, it finally hit me.  Risotto with Italian sausage, onions and arugula!  Not only would be it semi-healthy (it is a Cooking Light recipe after all), I could use up a lot of the extras in my pantry.

Risotto can be tricky.  If you cook it too fast, your rice is crunchy and that’s never a good sign.  If you cook it too slow, you end up with a gummy mess.  By adding the sauteed onions and arugula, you have a little leniency if your texture is off a bit.  I like  this recipe sweet so I add an extra teaspoon of sugar.  If you find it too sweet, cut it back to 2 teaspoons.  This recipe says it serves 4 but it never serves more than 2 in my household.

Risotto with Italian Sausage, Onions and Arugula

Ingredients:

• 4 cups fat-free chicken broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 cups chopped white onion
• 3 tsp sugar
• 8 oz sweet Italian turkey sausage (2 links)
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 2 cups arugula
• 3 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp grated lemon rind & wedges for serving

Directions:

1. Bring broth and water to simmer and keep warm over low heat.  Do not boil.
2. Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.  Add onions and sugar and saute until onions are golden.  Place onions in a bowl and set aside.
3. Remove sausage from casings and cook until browned, stirring to crumble.  Add shallots and saute 2 minutes.  Add rice and saute 30 seconds.  Stir in white wine and cook until nearly all the wine is absorbed, stirring constantly.
4. Stir in 1 cup of hot broth, cooking for 2 mintues or until the broth is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly.  Add remaining broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of broth is absorbed BEFORE adding the next.
5. Remove from heat, stir in onion, argula, parmesan cheese and grated lemon rind.  Serve immediately.

This is one of my favorite risottos.  If you’re not big on the greens, you can omit them and it will still have a nice flavor.

What is your favorite risotto?  Share your recipe with me by leaving a link in the comments!

Creamy #risotto with Italian sausage – delicious & healthy too! fb.me/1sViHXREs

— East 9th Street (@East9thStreet) February 28, 2012

Arugula Image Credit: Image: Suat Eman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net