Bacon, Basil, and Tomato Risotto {BLT Risotto}

Ingredients

• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 6 slices bacon, chopped into small pieces
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped jalapeño
• 1 ½ cups arborio rice
• ½ cup dry white wine (like pinot grigio)
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• ¾ cup grated parmesan, plus more for topping
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
• Small bunch basil, roughly chopped, plus more for topping

Instructions

• Pour chicken broth into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Once it’s boiling, lower heat and keep it at a simmer.
• Add bacon to a separate large saucepan over low heat and cook until it’s crispy, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-covered plate. Drain oil from pot until you have about 1 Tbsp left.
• Increase heat to medium and add in garlic and jalapeño. Cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute until garlic is fragrant but not browned.
• Add arborio rice to saucepan with the garlic and jalapeño. Cook the rice for about 2 minutes, stirring a bit, until it’s translucent around the edges. Add in white wine and stir a bit (scraping up any bits from the bottom of the saucepan) until the wine is totally absorbed, 3-4 minutes.
• Add about ¾ cup chicken broth and stir occasionally until it has evaporated completely, 2 -3 minutes. You don’t have to stir constantly, but make sure to give it a stir on occasion to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.
• Repeat this process, adding ¾ cup of chicken stock at a time, until risotto is creamy and rice is cooked to al dente. You may not need all of the chicken stock, but I usually add close to all of it if not all of it.
• Stir in reserved bacon (save a little for topping if you want!), tomatoes, parmesan, butter, and basil and cook until heated through.
• Serve and top with additional bacon and parmesan if desired.