Fresh vegetable risotto

This (optionally vegan) vegetable risotto recipe is a great option for everyone who loves good food and is fine with taking his of her time when cooking. Groups will also love this dish and it is the perfect dish to make yourself look like the professional chef you’d like to be.

So… what do you need?

• Risotto rice / arborio rice
• Forest mushroom broth (or garden herbs)
• A generous splash of dry, white wine
• Onion (1 per 2 people)
• 2 medium cloves of garlic
• Peas
• Fresh spinach
• Fresh thyme
• Basil
• Black pepper
• Lemon juice (about 10 ml) or from half a fresh lemon
• Olive oil

Not vegan or vegetarian? Add some:

• Parmesan and/or grated cheese
• Low fat bacon cubes

You start by heating up a pan of forest mushroom broth. In a frying pan with high sides, you also heat up some olive oil. If you use bacon cubes, I would recommend baking them first and using the fat from that, so you will need less olive oil. Throw in the rice, the onion and the garlic and stir it frequently, until the rice grains have turned transparent.

Then, you can add the splash of wine. Cook it on a medium heat until the wine is almost gone. Then add the first splash of broth. Keep stirring this frequently and add broth if the water is almost gone. Halfway through the water, you can add the herbs and the lemon juice. If you just have one or two splashes of broth left, you can add the spinach and the peas. The spinach leaves will shrink because of the heat of the broth, so put it on low heat, so you have time to add the spinach slowly. At this point, you’ll also need to taste frequently if the risotto is cooked through and through. If you keep adding broth, it will become too watery.

You can start plating it up now! When I eat with a group, I usually just put the pan on the table, so that everyone can get as much as they want. If not, I usually put it on a deeper plate or in a bowl, so that it’s easy to scoop out. If you chose to add some cheese as well, add it on the plate and stir it through then, since you can refrigerate or freeze the risotto without it.

This delicious vegetable risotto dish is also very nice next to fish or a steak (without the bacon in that case), but it also holds up very well on its own. If you find the bacon too much, chicken is a more subtle option in terms of taste. Have you tried this dish yet? Let me know in the comments below!

Lots of love,

Lisa

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