This Risotto with Spinach Cream is a creamy vegetarian dinner made with arborio rice, fresh spinach, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and a simple vegetable broth.
The rice cooks slowly in warm broth until it’s velvety and thick, and the spinach cream finish brings it all together into something that tastes genuinely rich without requiring anything complicated.
It holds up well as a weeknight dinner, a meal prep option, or a casual dinner party main (it looks more involved than it actually is).
I’ll often pair it with a side salad or set out some crusty bread to catch the sauce. For more spinach-based dishes, Homemade Cheesy Creamed Spinach and Easy Spinach and Ricotta Puff Pastry Pie are both solid options.
If you’re into creamy spinach dishes and easy veggie mains, these are worth bookmarking too:
- Homemade Cheesy Creamed Spinach
- Easy Spinach and Ricotta Puff Pastry Pie
- Butternut Squash Feta Salad
- 7 Easy Low Carb Soup Recipes
Ingredients You’ll Need
Arborio rice is the only non-negotiable here. Its starch is what creates the creamy texture without any thickeners. Everything else is flexible: swap vegetable broth for chicken broth, or use baby spinach if that’s what you have.
Print
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
4 cups vegetable broth, warmed
1 cup water
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
3 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and black pepper to taste
Directions
- Combine the vegetable broth and water in a medium saucepan and set it over medium-low heat.
You want it hot but not boiling. Keeping the broth warm throughout is more important than most people realize.
Cold broth added to a hot pan drops the temperature suddenly and interrupts the starch release, which affects the final texture.
Keep it on the lowest heat setting while you work. - Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat.
Add the chopped onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is soft and translucent.
Add the minced garlic and stir for another 60 seconds until fragrant.
Don’t let the garlic brown. It turns bitter quickly, and you will taste it through the whole dish. - Add the arborio rice to the pan and stir it constantly for about 2 minutes.
The edges of the grains should turn slightly translucent while the center stays white.
This short toasting step builds flavor and helps the rice hold its structure as the broth goes in.
A well-toasted rice absorbs broth more evenly. - Add one ladle of warm broth to the rice and stir frequently until it’s nearly absorbed, for about 2 to 3 minutes.
Then add the next ladle and repeat. Continue this process for 18 to 20 minutes until the rice is tender with just a slight bite at the center.
You may not use all the broth.
Taste the rice as you go and stop when the texture feels right. - Once the rice is cooked to your liking, add the fresh spinach and stir it in.
It will wilt down significantly in about 2 minutes.
If the pan looks dry, add a small splash of warm broth before stirring in the spinach.
The goal is for the spinach to blend into the risotto rather than sit on top of it. - Turn the heat to low and stir in the heavy cream and butter.
Let it cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring gently, until the risotto is thick and glossy.
Add the Parmesan cheese and season with salt and black pepper.
The risotto should be loose enough to spread slightly when spooned onto a plate. If it looks stiff, add a splash of warm broth and stir until it loosens up.
- Serve warm straight from the pan, spooned into shallow bowls, and enjoy!
Important Recipe Notes
- Keep the broth warm throughout cooking. A small saucepan on a back burner at low heat is all you need. Cold broth disrupts the cooking process and throws off the final texture.
- Stir frequently, not constantly. Every 30 to 45 seconds is enough, especially as the broth gets low. Constant stirring breaks down the rice too much and makes it gluey.
- Arborio rice only. Regular long-grain or short-grain rice won’t release enough starch to make the risotto properly creamy. Arborio is worth finding.
- This recipe doesn’t need wine. If you’re used to wine-based risotto, the flavor here will be a bit lighter, which actually lets the spinach and cream come through more clearly.
- Spinach amount is flexible. Three cups wilts down dramatically. Use 2 cups for a lighter presence or up to 4 cups for a greener, more intensely flavored risotto.
- Heavy cream only. Half-and-half or whole milk won’t give you the same richness. Full-fat coconut cream works as a dairy-free substitute, though the flavor shifts slightly.
- Risotto doesn’t reheat well. That’s just the honest truth of the dish. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days and reheat in a pan with a splash of broth over low heat.
How to Serve, Store & Customize This Recipe
Serving Spoon the risotto into shallow bowls while it’s still hot. It thickens fast as it cools, and a bowl that’s been sitting even 10 minutes loses some of that silky quality. A small shaving of extra Parmesan on top and a drizzle of olive oil are both worth doing.
Storing Leftovers keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. The texture firms up overnight, so reheat in a pan with a splash of broth over low heat, stirring gently until it loosens back up. Don’t freeze it; the cream breaks down and the rice turns mushy.
Customizing Swap the vegetable broth for chicken broth if you want a slightly richer base. Baby spinach works just as well as full-leaf and saves you the chopping step. For more substance, stir in a cup of cooked white beans or chickpeas right before serving.
Risotto with Spinach Cream
Course: Recipes4
servings10
minutes30
minutes380
kcalIngredients
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
4 cups vegetable broth, warmed
1 cup water
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
3 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and black pepper to taste
Directions
- Combine vegetable broth and water in a saucepan over low heat and keep warm while you cook.
- Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat, cook onion 4 to 5 minutes until soft, then add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
- Add arborio rice and stir for 2 minutes until the edges of the grains look slightly translucent.
- Add warm broth one ladle at a time, stirring often; wait until nearly absorbed before adding the next. Continue for 18 to 20 minutes until the rice is tender.
- Stir in fresh spinach and cook about 2 minutes until wilted, adding a splash of broth if the pan looks dry.
- Turn heat to low, stir in heavy cream and butter 1 to 2 minutes, add Parmesan, season with salt and pepper; add a splash of broth if the risotto looks too stiff.
- Serve warm straight from the pan and enjoy!
Notes
- Use warm broth for the creamiest texture.
- If the risotto becomes too thick, add a splash of broth before serving.
- Serve immediately, as risotto is best enjoyed fresh and creamy.
