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Cracked Spelt Risotto with Roasted Beets

Bob's Red Mill Spelt | @naturallyella
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★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

A fall or winter treat, this spelt risotto is made extra creamy by cracking the whole grains in a blender then melting in goat cheese at the end.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound beets
  • 3 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup whole spelt
  • 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 small onion (minced, roughly 6 ounces)
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme
  • 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh sage
  • 2 ounces goat cheese
  • sprinkle of parsley

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
  2. Wash and trim beets. Cut into quarters, then slice into 1/2 inch pieces. Transfer beets onto a roasting pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Toss beets until well coated with oil. Roast beets in the oven for 25 to 35 minutes or until fork tender.
  3. While beets are roasting, pour spelt into a high speed blender. Pulse 3 times in 2 second intervals to crack the spelt. You should see spelt flour gathering on the outside of the blender. Most of the grains should be broken, but it should not be too floury.
  4. In a small pot, combine vegetable broth and water. Bring to a low simmer. Next, heat a medium sized thick bottomed pan on medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, followed by the onions. Let onions cook until translucent and fragrant, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, salt, and pepper and let cook 1 minute more.
  5. Pour cracked spelt into the pan and stir well to coat with oil. Add white wine to deglaze the pan. Reduce heat to low and add 1 cup of the broth mixture. Stir well and let grains absorb liquid. Continue adding broth mixture 1/4 cup at a time and stirring until spelt is tender, about 45 to 55 minutes.
  6. As you add the last of the broth mixture, stir in minced herbs. When the liquid is almost completely absorbed, mix in goat cheese until well incorporated. Add roasted beets on top of risotto. Serve with a sprinkle of parsley.

Notes

Tips & Tricks: If you do not have a high speed blender, use a food processor to crack the spelt. You may need to pulse a bit more, but make sure that the resulting texture is still mostly chunky and not too smooth.

Leaving the skins on the beets makes for a less messy experience. Plus, extra fiber! But feel free to peel your beets before you cut and roast them.

Stock up: get the pantry ingredients you will need: spelt, vegetable broth

Nutrition: See the information.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://naturallyella.com/cracked-spelt-risotto/