Vegan Roasted Golden Beetroot Risotto
This vegan risotto is cooked with a roasted golden beetroot sauce, and topped with sauteed asparagus and cherry tomatoes. A task of hard work and love that gives back what you give to it. Put in a little elbow grease (olive oil works well, too) and impress on your next date.
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Introduction
There are some recipes that scream romantic. Luxurious, aphrodisiacal, impressive. They’re an endeavor of passion; of love. An amuse-bouche for the rest of your romantic evening. And while some dishes scream romantic, others holler third date from the mountain tops. This Roasted Golden Beetroot Risotto is one of those (whether it’s your third date or your three-hundredth).
A technical masterclass, an unwavering, fierce desire, and they know exactly what they’re doing is what your date will be thinking, and luckily for you, I’ve done all the hard work - giving you more time to put your best cologne or perfume on, and throw on some Marvin Gaye.
Risotto is the golden child of the fancy restaurant - the same fancy restaurants that secretly don’t want you to know that it’s not super difficult to cook. Sure, it’s difficult when you’re cooking for a table of snooty guests that might complain that their water isn’t sourced from a spring off of the coast of Bora Bora and your chef calls out for another 3 Rack of Lamb and 2 Foie Gras - but for us at home, all risotto takes is time, effort, and a little bit of loving.
This recipe takes a bit of preparation beforehand. The beets will take an hour or two to roast (depending on their size), but don’t worry - you can toss them in the oven and leave them. They’ll do their own thing for a while, and you won’t have to do any work for another hour - hour and a half.
The secret to this recipe is to never stop stirring. The friction of the arborio rice between each other results in the creaminess of the risotto, and as soon as you stop stirring, the rice can stick together and become gummy. Heat your stock up before you begin your rice, and add it bit by bit to your risotto pan. Wait until all of the stock has completely disappeared, then add some more. It takes about 20-25 minutes, but once you’re finished, you’ll be extremely happy you put in the effort.
Check out the Spruce it Up section for ideas on how to take this recipe to the next level, as well as this Creamy Mushroom Arancini that uses leftover risotto.
Before we Get Started
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 2 Hours
1.5 hours for the beets to roast, 30 minutes active time.
Total Time: 2 Hours, 5 Minutes
Yield: 3-4 Bowls
Ingredients
3 Golden Beets
1 Red Beet
2L Vegetable Broth
1 Onion
2 cloves Garlic
1 sprig Thyme
1/2 cup White Wine
2 cups Arborio Rice
2-3 pieces of Asparagus
6-7 Cherry Tomatoes
Method
Preheat your oven to 400°F. Toss your beets onto a baking tray, and throw them into the oven once it’s come to temperature. Set a timer for 1 hour, 30 minutes.
No tinfoil or oil needed for the beets. They can go straight into the oven.
Once your timer has expired, pull your beets from the oven, and poke them with a fork. If the fork slides in easily, the beets are cooked. If you feel resistance, throw them back in the oven for 15 minutes, and try again.
While your beets are cooking, slice 2-3 asparagus into 1 inch pieces. Halve some cherry tomatoes.
When your beets are cooked, use a small knife to peel the beets. Slice the red beets into crescent shapes (like a tangerine). Cut your golden beets into halves or quarters, and put them into a blender with 1 cup of water and a big pinch of salt. Blend until smooth.
Put your vegetable broth into a pot and bring to a boil.
As soon as it has reached a boil, you can turn the heat down to low.
It doesn’t need to be boiling, it only needs to be hot. So, it can be added to the pot should you complete the next 4 steps before it does reach a boil.
While your broth is coming to a boil, preheat a large pan over medium heat, with oil. Finely dice your onion, garlic, and thyme, and add them to the pan with a good pinch of salt when it comes to temperature.
Cook the onion, garlic, and thyme for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently to keep them from browning.
Once the onion is translucent, add your arborio rice, giving it a good stir for 1-2 minutes.
Pour in your white wine, mixing continuously until it has completely disappeared.
From here on out, do not stop stirring.
At this point, your broth will be hot. Grab a ladle, and pour a ladle of broth into your risotto pan. Keep stirring until it has disappeared, at which point, you can add another ladle, and repeat.
Seriously, don’t stop stirring.
When you pull the risotto back with your spoon, and you can see the bottom of the pot for about 1/2 a second before the risotto covers it again, you should add your next ladle of broth.
Continue this process until you’ve added all of the broth to your risotto pan. At this point, take the risotto pan off of the heat completely, and add your blended golden beetroot mixture, as well as a good pinch of salt. Stir to combine, and taste your risotto for seasoning. Add more salt if needed.
Preheat a small pan over medium-high heat, with oil. Once it has come to temperature, throw in the asparagus and cherry tomatoes you prepared earlier. Add a pinch of salt, and cook them for 3-4 minutes.
Pour in 2 ladles of risotto onto a plate. Put some of your sauteed tomatoes and asparagus into the center, as well as a piece of your red beetroot. Crack some black pepper over top.
Enjoy.
Spruce it Up
If you enjoy heat, add a pinch of red chili flakes to the blender with the golden beetroot and the water.
Shallots can be substituted for onion. They’re a bit more expensive, but they have a great flavour that’s perfect for risotto.
Try your hand at different types of risotto. Mix up the vegetables. Some good combinations are:
Mushroom and Thyme
Butternut Squash
Pumpkin
Pea
Jerusalem Artichoke