Wild Rice Spinach Risotto

I love new easy ideas for rice dishes that taste great; if you eat gluten-free you probably feel the same way. Rice can be really boring after a while if you eat it every day the same way (well, I could eat Thai red curry every day with their jasmine rice everyday) but, I guess in my own kitchen I sometimes feel like I need a new ingredient to spice up or "wow" a rice dish. This recipe is not crazy inventive by any means, but I have to say that after I put it together, shared it with some friends, and hardly had any leftovers... I wanted to make more. The good news is that if you make this recipe you should at least have leftover for lunch the next day which is my favorite thing to do for lunches...pack up healthy dinner leftovers.


Wild rice for starters is a great alternative to a plain brown rice or jasmine rice. It also has a distinct smell when cooking up in the pot to other grains. The Lundburg Rice Co. has a great mix already together in a bag that you can cook up (Wehani rice, Black Japonica Rice, sweet brown rice, and long grain brown rice), or your local health food grocery store may have a wild rice blend in their bulk section. I love the earthy crunch to the blend and the texture is a mix of soft and crunchy. If you are looking for switch-up in the rice dept., try a wild rice and really discover what whole grain rice is all about. Now to the cookin'...


In a large wok or sauce pan, saute the following ingredients until browned,


saute:
1 cup of chopped celery
1 diced small to medium sweet or red onion
3-4 chopped cloves of garlic


After 10 minutes or so of cooking,

add:
3 cups of a freshly cooked wild rice blend
1/3 cup of wheat-free reduced sodium tamari
1/3 cup of almond milk
2 TB of ghee-clarified butter (lactose free) (if you don't have any, it's ok to omit this ingredient)
sea salt and cracked pepper to taste 2 cups of fresh baby spinach
pine nuts or sliced almonds to serve

*Mix through and through until all the ingredients blend and you start to get a little creaminess to the mixture. If it looks like you need more liquid add a little more almond milk. Cook on lower heat for the flavors to meld and the texture to be more combined and soft.

*Then add 2 cups of fresh baby spinach last and then stir until the spinach is cooked and blends into the risotto. Cook for maybe 5 more minutes and then it is ready to serve.

*When serving add pine nuts or slices almonds for flavor and crunch. Add some fresh herbs, parsley and sage would be goods ones. If you let it cook up slowly and simmer to keep warm the flavors really blend and it becomes quite flavorful and creamy, so don't be afraid to have it on the stove for longer than the given times.

*This is a great meal on its own, but can be a great side to baked fish or chicken and a salad.

See, that was so simple and you probably don't have to go out and buy to many of the ingredients because you have then on hand already. I hope you try this one out and it becomes a favorite for you as it has for me.

Enjoy and be well!