This Is the Most Popular Risotto Recipe on Pinterest
Winter is acting like that clueless party guest who just will not leave, even though we've put away all the food and keep gesturing towards the door. Just when we think he's gone and we can all get ready for spring, winter comes bursting back in as though he just thought of another story we all have to hear right away.
But the one upside to this deeply annoying weather pattern is that it is the perfect season for risotto. The grocery stores and farmers markets are all full of gorgeous fresh vegetables, but it's still chilly enough that a hearty, creamy, slow-cooked risotto sounds very appealing.
It's not surprising that people are really thinking about risotto right now, but one thing that is surprising is that the most popular risotto recipe on Pinterest isn't technically a risotto at all. It's been saved more than 43,000 times, but this mushroom cauliflower risotto recipe from Paleo Hacks does not contain a single grain of rice.
Instead, this grain-free, Paleo take on mushroom risotto is made with "cauliflower rice," which is just what happens if you process a head of cauliflower in a food processor until the pieces are about the size and shape of grains of rice.
It's obvious why Paleo folks would want to swap the rice for cauliflower, but plenty of grain-eaters are looking for ways to include more vegetables in their diets, too. We've already tried swapping our pasta with zucchini cut into "zoodles," so why not replace the rice with rice-shaped cauliflower next?
See it on Pinterest: Mushroom Risotto from Paleo Hacks
Cauliflower is not rice, but when cooked like risotto with beef stock and sautéed mushrooms, onions, and garlic, it soaks up the flavors to create a rich, hearty, satisfying take on classic risotto that's lighter and almost entirely made of vegetables.
The cauliflower "rice" also cooks much more quickly than arborio or carnaroli rice, so it's speedy enough for a weeknight dinner. And one large head of cauliflower turns into four or five cups of "rice," so it's pretty economical, too.
More Risotto Recipes from Kitchn
What's your favorite risotto recipe?
