Mushroom, Kale, & Sausage Risotto

A few nights ago I made Coriander Chicken with Chickpeas & Kale from the latest Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine.  It was part of 3 “Express Lane Suppers” (meals that could be made with only 10 ingredients from the grocery store).  Tonight I tried out the 2^nd one of those meals.

The original recipe from the magazine was just Mushroom-Kale Risotto, but part way through making dinner, Lance got home from work and suggested adding sausage to the mix (which is why the sausage isn't pictured in the ingredients photo).  If you’re looking for a vegetarian version of the recipe, just use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock & omit the sausage. 

Mushroom, Kale, & Sausage Risotto (adapted from Every Day with Rachael Ray Magazine, October 2014 issue)

Ingredients:

• 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 5 T butter
• 2 cups rice (I used Jasmine rice, but the original recipe called for Arborio rice)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large bunch kale, stemmed and chopped (the original said to use half a bunch, but I wanted to make it a bit healthier with more greens)
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan
• 1½ tsp white wine vinegar
• 2 T extra virgin olive oil
• 16 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• 14 ounces smoked sausage, sliced (I used Eckrich brand)

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, simmer the chicken stock.

2. In a larger pan, stir onion and 3 T butter over medium heat until onion softens, about 3 minutes. 

3. Add the rice and garlic, stir 3 minutes.

4. Reduce heat to low and stir 1 cup stock into the rice.  Cook, stirring regularly, until nearly absorbed.  Repeat with 3 more cups stock, adding 1 cup of stock at a time.

5. Stir in kale a handful at a time, thinning with extra stock as needed.

6. Take off heat and stir in ¾ cup of the Parmesan, the white wine vinegar, and the remaining butter; season with salt and pepper.

7. In the now empty pan from the chicken stock, heat 1 T olive oil over medium-high.  Add the mushrooms and cook until browned.  At the same time, heat the smoked sausage in a skillet over medium heat until slightly charred.

8. Stir the sausage and half the mushrooms into the rice mixture. 

9. Divide among plates, drizzle with olive oil, and top with extra mushroom and the remaining Parmesan cheese. 

We paired our dinner with Cigar City’s Cucumber Saison farmhouse ale.  Our friends had recommended it when we were at Cigar City Brewpub.  Personally, I wasn’t a big fan – it had a bit of a pickle aftertaste.  I’m not sure if that’s just because we had it for a few weeks, but it wasn’t expired and stayed in the fridge that whole time.  Lance really liked it though, so he ended up finishing mine.  It was worth trying though – definitely not a typical beer.