Breakfast Risotto with Apples and Raisins
Move over oatmeal, there’s a new hot breakfast in town: sweet, creamy breakfast risotto loaded with apples and raisins. This risotto is naturally sweetened with fruit and fruit juice and includes flax meal and chia seeds for extra fiber and protein.
If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you might already know that I’m working with the New York Apple Growers this month and will be creating a few recipes with their new Ruby Frost apples. I’m so excited – I love supporting local/NYS businesses (one of the farms that grows them is where I go apple picking every fall!) and these apples are really good.
They have a sweet-tart flavor and firm texture that make them perfect for cooking with or for eating raw (I love sprinkling them with cinnamon for an afternoon snack). This breakfast risotto features them both ways: apples cooked with the rice are soft and sweet while raw apples on top are tart and crunchy. It’s the best of both worlds.
I made this breakfast risotto the same way I make savory risottos, but I swapped the wine for apple juice and the broth for almond milk. I also added some flax meal and chia, which add a nutritional boost and give the risotto a slight nutty flavor. I also stirred in a hand full of raisins with the first milk addition. Adding them during the cooking process instead of using them as a topping gives them time to absorb some liquid and plump up; I love the texture they add to the final dish.
Toppings are optional, but fun. I love to add more chopped apple (leave the skins on so you can see some of that gorgeous red color) and some walnuts for texture. The risotto is sweet enough on it’s own, but a pinch of brown sugar adds caramel notes that pair really well with the apples.
Ruby Frost apples ripen later in the season so they’re perfect for the frosty days of winter. Look for them at select retailers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states (there’s a store locator on the NYAG website.)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 Ruby Frost apples peeled and chopped
- 1.5 cups arborio rice
- 1 cup apple juice
- 4 cups unsweetened almond milk
- ¼ cup raisins
- 2 tablespoons flax meal
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 pinch salt
- Optional: additional chopped apple brown sugar, and/or walnuts for serving
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large, shallow saute pan set over medium heat. Add the apples and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until slightly softened.
- Add the rice; stir so that each grain of rice is coated with butter and appears glossy. Cook for 3-4 minutes, or until the rice is mostly translucent. Stir in the apple juice and cook until it has been absorbed.
- Add 1 cup of almond milk along with the raisins, flax meal, chia seeds, and salt. Stir constantly until all the milk has absorbed into the rice. Continue this process, adding the milk 1/4 cup at a time, until the rice is creamy and soft – the whole process will take about 30 minutes.
- Top with brown sugar, chopped apples, and walnuts, as desired.
This post was sponsored by the New York Apple Growers. Thank you for supporting the products that keep me inspired in the kitchen!
When I was a kid my mom used to make Rice and Raisins for breakfast. This reminds me a bit of it….plus apples!
What a fun and creative take on risotto. I love this idea of having rissoto for breakfast and I have a feeling my family will love it too.
Nice recipe, Lauren! Thanks for sharing.
I’ve never tried a savory and sweet risotto like this for breakfast but I’m so interested to try it now! Love the combo of flavors you’ve got going on and also that you added chia and flax, super idea!
What a delicious breakfast! That apple looks like perfection. Yum!
I love risotto…why have I never thought to make a breakfast version? Brilliant!
I love experimenting with various grains in the morning.
This sounds so warm and comforting on a leisurely morning. Love the seedy additions!
this really does sound SO much better than oatmeal! and I love cooking with apples
I’m all for switching things up at breakfast and this is so creative. That apple looks perfectly crisp and juicy. I wish we could find those in Utah!
That is one gorgeous apple, and I love the name. This recipe is so dang creative. Pass the bowl.