I know that I’ve said this before, but one of my favorite foods in life is risotto. I love it so much. If it weren’t filled with cheese and calories, I would make it much more often than I do. But as it is, I make it once in a long while, and I enjoy it so much every time. This version had a mixture of creamy fontina cheese, Parmesan, and grilled peppered chicken breasts, and it was fabulous. B liked it a lot particularly because it had slices of chicken and tasted more like a meal than other protein-less risottos that I’ve made, and I liked it because, well, it was risotto. I don’t have a lot more to say about this meal other than it was a nice and warm, cheesy, creamy, and delicious supper for a cold, snowy day. The fact that it is still cold and snowy in April….well, I won’t get into that.
Chicken and Fontina Risotto
Source: The Cynical Chef, originally from Food Network Magazine
I cut this recipe in half to serve two (still with quite a bit of leftovers!) and made a few minor changes. Here’s the recipe as I made it.
3 cups chicken broth
Extra virgin olive oil
1/2 Vidalia onion, finely chopped
1 cup arborio rice
2 sprigs fresh thyme, stems removed and finely minced
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used Pinot Grigio)
Kosher salt
1/2 cup Parmesan, finely grated
Black pepper
1/2 cup fontina, grated
1 chicken breast, seasoned with salt and pepper, grilled or sauteed, and sliced
1. Bring the broth and 1 cup of water to a simmer in a saucepan. Cover and keep warm on low heat and at a gentle simmer.
2. Heat a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil in a pot. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the rice and thyme, and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes, stirring. Add the wine, and cook and stir until the liquid is absorbed. Season with salt.
3. Ladle in the hot broth, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly until all of the liquid is absorbed before adding more. Continue this process until the rice is tender, appoximately 25 minutes. Give the rice a taste to tell when it is ready.
4. When the rice is ready, turn off the heat and stir in the Parmesan, fontina, and black pepper. Fold in the grilled chicken slices and serve.
Risotto is also one of my favourites. So warm and comforting. This one looks great!
Hey Carrie :)
Is there anything that I could possibly substitute for the white wine in this recipe? I would rather not buy it just for this because I can’t see myself ever using all of it and I would hate to spend the money on it. If you have any suggestions let me know!
Hey Julie…you can just leave the white wine out entirely. It’s just for a little extra flavor, but I leave it out a lot if I make risotto and don’t have any on hand. :)