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VG Vegetarian

Whole Grain Risotto with Kale and Carrots

5
/5
1 hr 15 mins
29 Comments
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By: Rachel GurkPosted: 01/11/2012Updated: 10/02/2021

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Hearty whole grain risotto with kale and carrots is a delicious side dish that goes great with salmon or chicken.

This post is part of the Virtual Potluck! We are teaming up with Bob’s Red Mill and California Olive Ranch to bring you four weeks of healthy eating–A Healthy New Year. This week I’m focusing on a side dish.

For the side dish, we were challenged to pair Bob’s Red Mill’s Grande Whole Grains with California Olive Ranch’s Miller’s Blend Olive Oil. The grain mix includes hard red white wheat, long grain brown rice, whole oats, whole rye, whole triticale, whole barley, white buckwheat, and sesame seeds. Bob’s Red Mill suggests using these grains as a cereal, a pilaf in salads, soups, and pita bread or as a stir- fry with vegetables. California Olive Ranch describes Miller’s Blend as having a “fruity beginning balanced with a bit of pepper at the end.”

Uncooked grains in round white bowl with stainless steel scoop inserted.

I chose to make a risotto and I served it as a side with a roasted chicken.  And let me tell you, this is such nutritious risotto. I love eating healthy foods, it just makes you feel so good. When I got home from the grocery store with this week’s groceries, I washed another huge bunch of kale and put it into the fridge with a smile on my face, knowing that I would be eating so well this week. Okay–so maybe that sounds a little cheesy, but it’s true. I feel better about myself when I’m putting healthy foods into my body.

Round white bowl with risotto, garnished with Parmesan cheese, with spoon inserted.

 

The grains do retain a fair amount of bite to them (that’s FIBER folks!), so it isn’t smooth like traditional risotto. It is much more chewy. More like a pilaf. The flavors in this are great and I kind of like the chewiness of the grains.

Closeup of risotto in white bowl.

 

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Closeup of risotto in round white bowl, garnished with shredded Parmesan cheese.
Recipe

Get the Recipe: Whole Grain Risotto with Kale and Carrots

5 from 1 vote
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins
4 servings
Print Rate Recipe
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Hearty whole grain risotto with kale and carrots is a delicious side dish that goes great with salmon or chicken.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 shallots, minced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 medium carrots, grated (about 1 cup)
  • 2 cups Grande Whole Grains (Bob’s Red Mill)
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 4 cups reduced sodium chicken stock
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
  • 4 cups chopped kale, lightly packed
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • In a large sauté pan or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onions, carrots and garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant, stirring frequently.
  • Add wine and scrape off any bits that may be on the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook for 2-4 minutes.
  • Add chicken stock and fresh thyme and bring to a boil. Add the grains, stir, reduce heat to medium-low and cook covered for 30 minutes.
  • Add chopped kale and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes or until grains have softened and liquid is absorbed.
  • Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan until melted. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  • If desired, drizzle with additional olive oil.

Notes

  • Recipe adapted generously from Bob's Red Mill.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1of 4, Calories: 267kcal, Carbohydrates: 18g, Protein: 14g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Cholesterol: 22mg, Sodium: 1127mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 5g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk
Did You Make This?Be sure to upload a photo & tag me at @RachelCooksBlog. I love seeing what you made!
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Disclosure: I was provided with free products to use, review, and create recipes with. All opinions, as always, are 100% my own.

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  1. Laura says

    October 21, 2014 at 3:53 pm

    Hi Rachel!

    How many would this serve as a main?

    Thanks!

    Laura

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 21, 2014 at 8:26 pm

      Hi Laura —
      I created this recipe before I knew how to properly write recipes, ha! I would think it would serve 4, but I haven’t prepared it in a long time.

      Reply
  2. Olga @ MangoTomato says

    January 15, 2012 at 5:01 pm

    I bet you could make this into a soup and it’d be really good!

    Reply
    • Michelle says

      March 16, 2022 at 12:05 pm

      In Italy, this is often made as a thick soup. Sometimes with beans, small pasta and/or different vegetables added to it. Delicious!

      Reply
      • Rachel Gurk says

        March 16, 2022 at 12:12 pm

        Yum!

        Reply
  3. Cat says

    January 15, 2012 at 4:24 am

    I follow you on Twitter !

    Reply
  4. Cat says

    January 15, 2012 at 4:20 am

    This looks healthy and delicious! I love adding kale to green up a dish… hopefully I win Miller’s Blend to make this dish :)

    Reply
  5. Wendy Brown says

    January 13, 2012 at 9:51 pm

    This recipe sounds delicious and I’m sure it was enhanced using Miller’s Blend. Thanks for the picture of the grains!

    Reply
  6. Linda S. says

    January 12, 2012 at 2:45 pm

    A cousin (who’s Italian-American)was just saying on the phone that he makes risotto a lot, and a friend of his from Milan said that you can add almost anything to risotto. Miller’s Blend sounds like a good beginning for this risotto.

    Reply
  7. Jeffrey says

    January 12, 2012 at 12:38 pm

    Your use of the Miller’s Blend and the Whole Grains Blend looks like a great side dish and at the same time would make a great entree for me. I have never tried Kale but plan to soon and this looks like it could make the cut as my first recipe. The close up photo looks amazing and your dish looks so “fresh”. Good Work!

    Reply
  8. Lisa says

    January 12, 2012 at 11:02 am

    That’s pretty much all I use, whole grain rice or whole grain period. This looks so colorful and filling!

    Reply
  9. Sommer@ASpicyPerspective says

    January 12, 2012 at 10:53 am

    We love kale and try to squeeze it into just about everything. Great combo!

    Reply
  10. diabeticFoodie says

    January 12, 2012 at 8:32 am

    This looks great and it would help with my Build a Better Me goal to eat more dark leafy greens.

    Reply
  11. jackie @ marin mama cooks says

    January 12, 2012 at 1:28 am

    This dish is right up my alley and I love chewy pastas and grains.
    I love all the veggies you used in here as well.

    Reply
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