Fennel and Chicken Sausage Risotto with Fresh Herbs
September 20, 2009
I found a recipe for a pancettte and leek risotto from a Williams Sonoma catalog, and while not having a whole lot of experience making risotto from scratch, I decided to make a go of it. Very very easy, a little time consuming but well worth it! It was so tasty that I decided to make my own version and use sausage and fennel as my star ingredients. I used a “Saag’s” brand of smoked chicken sausage with basil, herbs and cracked pepper. The fresh herb’s that I added were basil, itailian parsley and chives. We served it with fresh popover’s. This meal was lip smacking good! Please enjoy!
To learn more about making risotto/ risotto recipes check out www.newitalianrecipes.com.
- 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp. fresh chopped chives
- 2 tbsp. fresh fennel fronds
- 8 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 4 Basil cracked pepper chicken sausages
- 1 sweet yellow onion, chopped
- 1 fennel bulb, rinsed and thinly sliced (white part only)
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 ½ cups Arborio rice
- ½ cup white wine
- 6 cups chicken broth, warmed
- 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
- ¾ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Pour broth into a large sauce pan, turn heat to low and warm while you prepare your dish. Place your parsley, basil, chives, fennel fronds, 4 tbsp. olive oil, and salt and pepper in a small food processor. Blend to a paste like consistency. Place in a separate bowl, and set aside. Cut your sausage in half, then again into half coins, cutting the half coins in half. Heat a nonstick skillet with 2 tbsp. olive oil, add the sausage and sauté until nicely browned. Remove and set aside. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the remaining olive oil and fennel and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and cooked, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Add the rice and sausage stirring completely. Add the wine and stir until it is absorbed, about 12 minutes. Start adding your warmed broth, ½ cup at a time, stirring constantly until almost completely absorbed, before adding more broth. When the rice is tender and cooked, remove from heat. Stir in butter, cheese, pureed spices, and season with salt and pepper.
Serves: 4
Total time: about 90 minutes
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