There is a chill in the air as we move towards autumn. Even though I will quickly remind you that summer is not yet over, I will also admit that the time is coming for cooler weather foods. I'm still getting plenty of greens at the farmers' market and they lend themselves nicely to in-between weather comfort dishes.
I also, as you may have noticed, have been spending some time hanging around the Amish farm stand at our greenmarket. There are plenty of local dairy options at the bigger farmers' markets in the city (and of course Ronnybrook is readily available from Fresh Direct or Brooklyn Fare or any number of other conscientious markets), but, of course, my approach is that the local-est is best and I'm happy to support a community who brings us single ingredient items. You want butter? It's made with cream. Period. Yum.
Over time, we've expanded our take from the Amish stand to include eggs, a variety of cheeses and now, bacon. And really, isn't that all we need in life? I recently bought a pound of sliced bacon and began dreaming up ways change our world. Mix in those late summer greens and I had a plan. My first adventure with this bacon was to make my collard greens, which, in retrospect, was a very good plan.
By making something I could make in my sleep, I became quickly familiar with how the Amish bacon was different from others that I've used before. Amish bacon (at least from this particular stand) was subtler, less salty and almost lighter, if bacon can be such a thing. For collard greens, it was almost too subtle. And so, rainbow chard and bacon risotto was born.
To bring out the bacon's strengths, I crisped the bacon and rendered the fat in the pot I'd use for the rice. Then, I cooked garlic and onions in the bacon fat and added the arborio rice to get it saturated in the bacon fat and other flavors. The bacon was still subtle, but it was able to come through in a creamy, simple rice dish. The rainbow chard added earthiness which complemented the bacon without overwhelming it. Finally, against my husband's protests, I used a simple red wine to bring it all home.
Now that I've learned about my product, I'm looking forward to new ways to make it work for us. And, when I need that stronger bacon-y element, there's always Niman Ranch.
Rainbow Chard and Bacon Risotto
- 5 cups organic chicken broth
- 4 slices bacon (nice and streaky, local if you can find it), cut into about 1 inch pieces
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (LINK)
- 4 cups rainbow chard, trimmed and chopped (about 1 bunch)
- sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- freshly grated Pecorino Romano
- Heat chicken broth in a pot over medium heat. Lower if it starts to boil.
- In a separate pot, cook bacon pieces until fat is rendered and bacon reaches desired crispness. (I like it nice and crispy to add texture later.)
- Add onions and garlic to bacon fat and cook until translucent. Add rice and chard. Cook about 3 minutes until rice is well coated and greens have wilted.
- Add wine to rice mixture, stirring constantly, and cook until dry. Add broth in 1/2 cup intervals, cooking until dry.
- Mix in grated cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add bacon and give it one last stir to combine. Enjoy!