Sausage and Broccoli Rabe Risotto — The Fuel That Started It All

Wedding planning with Donna Abernathy is an experience that should be documented for military training purposes. She could plan an amphibious landing. She could organize the D-Day invasion. Instead, she's organizing a courthouse wedding with pizza, which she has upgraded to a courthouse wedding with a small reception in the backyard, which will inevitably become a medium reception in the backyard, because Donna does not do small. The timeline: we're getting married in March. March 2018. Five months from now. Ryan and I chose March because (a) it's not too hot and not too cold, (b) Ryan's leave schedule works, and (c) I don't want to wait any longer. Five months feels like forever. Six weeks feels more appropriate but Mom said 'Rachel, I cannot plan a wedding in six weeks, I am not a magician' and I said 'You packed a house in three days during a PCS' and she said 'That's different' and it absolutely is not different. The venue: courthouse in Jacksonville, NC. Close to Camp Lejeune, where Ryan's friends can attend, and where the marriage license is easier to get. Mom is... processing this. She wanted a church wedding. I wanted simple. Ryan wanted whatever I wanted. We compromised: courthouse ceremony, but Mom's pastor will say a blessing at the reception. The food: this is where Mom has full control and everyone knows it. She's already planning the menu for the backyard reception. So far: pulled pork (her vinegar-based North Carolina style), her potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, cornbread, and 'a cake, Rachel, you are having a CAKE.' The cake will be simple. I want a two-tier vanilla cake with buttercream. Mom wants to make it herself. Megan wants us to order from a bakery. I'm going with Mom. Always Mom. Dad's contribution to wedding planning has been exactly one sentence: 'I'm walking you down the aisle. End of discussion.' There is no aisle at a courthouse. There will be an aisle. Dad will create one. He will walk me down it. End of discussion. Ryan's parents are coming from Ohio. I haven't met them yet. His mom, Linda, sent me a card that said 'Welcome to the family' and included her pot roast recipe, handwritten on an index card. I nearly cried. A pot roast recipe from your future mother-in-law is the most sacred document a woman can receive. It's a transfer of trust. It's an inheritance. I put it in Mom's recipe binder. It lives next to Mom's pot roast recipe now. Two pot roasts, one binder. One family, getting bigger. Mom made her beef stew tonight — the one with the soy sauce and red wine. 'For energy,' she said. 'We have a wedding to plan.' Five months. A courthouse. A cake. A father who insists on an aisle. Let's do this.

Mom’s beef stew was already on the stove before I even sat down — she had clearly decided that wedding planning required proper fortification. That spirit of cooking something bold and restorative to match the energy of a big moment is exactly what this Sausage and Broccoli Rabe Risotto captures. It’s the kind of dish that says we have things to do and we are not going to do them on an empty stomach — savory, a little bitter from the broccoli rabe, rich from the sausage, and satisfying in the way only a slow-stirred pot of something can be. Make it on any night that deserves a real dinner.

Sausage and Broccoli Rabe Risotto

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 55 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb Italian sausage (mild or hot), casings removed
• 1 bunch broccoli rabe, tough stems trimmed, roughly chopped
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 5 cups low-sodium chicken broth, kept warm
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Blanch the broccoli rabe. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli rabe and cook for 2 minutes. Drain, transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking, then drain again and set aside.
2. Brown the sausage. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until browned and cooked through, about 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside, leaving any drippings in the pan.
3. Saute the aromatics. Reduce heat to medium. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute more.
4. Toast the rice. Add the Arborio rice to the pan and stir to coat in the oil and onion mixture. Toast the rice, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes until the edges of the grains look slightly translucent.
5. Add the wine. Pour in the white wine and stir until it is almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes.
6. Build the risotto. Add the warm broth one ladleful (about 1/2 cup) at a time, stirring frequently and waiting until each addition is nearly absorbed before adding the next. Continue until the rice is creamy and cooked to al dente, about 20–22 minutes total. You may not need all of the broth.
7. Finish the dish. Stir in the butter and Parmesan until melted and incorporated. Fold in the reserved sausage and blanched broccoli rabe. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
8. Serve immediately. Divide among bowls and top with additional Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 620 | Protein: 28g | Fat: 28g | Carbs: 58g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 890mg