Oven Chicken Risotto

I love risotto.  I think it’s such a nice alternative to pasta or rice.  But I do NOT like standing over the stove to stir it constantly.  So when I saw this recipe, I was quite intrigued.  This turned out to be a great summer dish.  I don’t typically like tomatoes, but this was fabulous!  Recipe from Southern Living Magazine.

Meal Planning:  Served with any of the green bean dishes listed under the “Vegetable” label

Ingredients:

-2 Tbsp butter

-2.5 cups chicken broth

-1 cup uncooked Arborio rice

-1/2 small onion, diced

-1/2 tsp salt (honestly, I thought the rice was a little too salty so next time I’ll cut this down to maybe 1/4 tsp)

-2 cups chopped chicken (anything on hand or a deli rotisserie chicken works good too)

-1 (8 oz) package fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2” cubes

-1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

-1/4 cup shredded fresh basil

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place butter in a 13x9” baking dish; bake 5 minutes or until melted.  Stir in broth and next 3 ingredients.

2.  Bake, covered, at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Fluff rice with a fork.  Stir in chicken, mozzarella, and tomatoes; sprinkle with shredded basil.  Serve immediately.

My husband decided that he didn’t want his chicken mixed in with the dish so we just did it on the side.  Still a wonderful meal!