Hola Mi Gente,
One of my favorite things about this community we’ve built around food, is all the different voices that come to the table. One of my biggest desires for this space, is that it would be accessible to a wide range of eating styles and habits. So, when a few weeks ago I asked what you wanted to cook together, and my vegan friends asked for comfort food, I knew this was my opportunity to:
- Say that you are welcome in this space. That I am glad you are here, and I respect the food choices you make for your health or your beliefs.
- I WANT to make food that is accessible to you, or easily adapted to your needs.
It’s part of building a long table: making sure there is a little bit of something for everyone.
When I think of comfort food often times, I think about something that is filling, flavorful, and comforting. As a sat at my figurative drawing board thinking of vegan foods that could fit those molds easily and well, Risotto came forefront to my mind.
I love risotto for it’s creaminess. I think of it as something that is piping hot as I eat it, and can imagine each warm spoonful making it’s way to my stomach with a smooth, soothing feeling. This risotto does that. It also makes your home smell aromatic and delicious.
As with most of my recipes, this is one that is easily adaptable to your tastes. I used green beans, mushrooms, garlic, and rosemary, but you can easily sub in pine nuts instead of mushrooms, or asparagus for the green beans. As long as the vegan butter + vegetable broth stay around, you are bound to have a delicious comfort meal. I DO really love the garlic, rosemary, and lemon combination though. That triad of ingredients always tends to marry well, and bring so much balance to a dish, so if your taste buds don’t have anything against those, I recommend keeping them in. You can thank me later.
This recipe honors the sort of slow process of risotto, where you continually pour in broth, and stir your rice. It takes about 35 minutes, but if you queue up your favorite podcast, or an episode of your favorite shows, it’ll make the time go by quickly, and you will be beautifully rewarded with a decadent one-pot dinner.
As always, I hope this recipe makes a delicious meal to share around your tables with you and yours.
Love, love, love,
SAVE ON PINTEREST
Vegan Garlic Mushroom Risotto
Ingredients
- 3 TBSP Avocado or Olive Oil
- 6 Cloves garlic Finely Sliced
- 8 Oz Baby Bella Mushrooms
- 2 Sprigs Rosemary Finely Chopped + 1 More for Garnish
- 2 C one Grain Rice
- 64 Oz Vegetable Stock
- 6 TBSP Vegan Butter I used Earth Balance
- 2 C Chopped Green Beans
- Salt to Taste
- 1/2 Lemon Zested
Instructions
- Heat a Dutch Oven over medium heat and add in oil. Sauté your garlic and mushrooms together, along with one sprig of rosemary de-stemmed and finely chopped. Sprinkle a little salt over them, and cook until the garlic is golden. Remove about half of the mixture and set aside.
- Add in the rice, and begin adding vegetable stock in one cup at a time, stirring, until the stock is absorbed, and then adding more. Repeat this until your rice is cooked, and the mixture is a little soupy. Add in the vegan butter and stir to melt into the risotto. Add in the green beans here (this helps them stay firm and not wilt or lose their color), and bring to a boil for about 2 minutes. Add salt to taste. Serve warm, and add in the remaining garlic + mushroom mixture, the lemon zest, and rosemary for garnish. Enjoy!
Mary-Beth Johnson
Mary-Beth is a creative, food-obsessed, Georgia transplant living Chicago. She is proudly and fiercely Latina, and more specifically Chapina. In her day to day she is a food educator to students around Chicagoland aged 3 to 80+, both virtually and in-person. She is passionate about cultivating the truth that every person has an understanding of food that deserves being brought to the table, and that time in the kitchen can be sacred, passionate, and an act of love for self and others. Outside the kitchen you can find her at the intersections of infertility, chronic illness, and a deep love for the dignity of all humans. She hopes to create a space that is holistic about the role of food in the social, political, relational, and physiological dynamics of our world.
