Apr 26

Silverbeet, beetroot and goat's cheese risotto

Jamie Oliver is one of my food heroes.  I love his cooking style, but I also love his mission in life – to teach people to respect and enjoy delicious, healthy food.  That’s a philosophy I can get behind!

This recipe is loosely based upon Jamie’s spinach risotto recipe in his Cook with Jamie book.  Of course I’m rarely content to leave a recipe as is, so here it is with my modifications.  Unlike last time I posted risotto on this site, this is a real one – it requires a closer eye and more time at the stove, but the results are lovely. Worth doing on a cold night when you enjoy the heat of the stove!

spinachrisotto

Silverbeet, beetroot and goat's cheese risotto

By: Leah

I used a roasted beetroot in my risotto - I would recommend using one you've roasted yourself, although in a pinch whole baby beetroots from a tin would work as well. This is my adaptation to make two reasonable sized portions - reduce or increase as you see fit. This dish is vegetarian.
Details
  • Prep Time:
    30 min
  • Cook Time:
    40 min
  • Ready In:
    1 h, 10 min
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • 200 grams Aborio rice
  • 2 cups Vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup White wine
  • 1/2 tbsp Olive oil
  • 1/2 tbsp Butter
  • 2 Shallots, sliced
  • 2 stalks Celery, finely sliced
  • 1 bunch Silverbeet, chopped
  • 1 tsp Butter
  • 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
  • 1 clove Garlic, chopped
  • 1 Beetroot, roasted and sliced
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
  • 1-2 tbsp Soft goat's cheese
  • 1/2 Lime
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
  1. In a small saucepan heat the stock until it's simmering.
  2. Heat a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add the butter and olive oil, then add the shallots and celery.  Cook gently, without browning, for 10 minutes.
  3. Add the risotto to the saucepan, stir well with a wooden spoon to coat risotto with oil.  This allows the grain to heat up and will ensure it absorbs the liquid properly.
  4. Quickly add the white wine to the pan.  It should sizzle, stir quickly and let the wine evaporate.
  5. Add 1/4 cup of stock at a time to the rice, stirring constantly until it absorbs.  Continue with another 3/4 cup of stock.  Remove from heat while you cook the silverbeet.
  6. In another medium saucepan melt the butter over a medium heat.  Add the garlic, nutmeg and spinach and cook, stirring regularly, until the silverbeet wilts down.
  7. Remove spinach from heat and then process in a food process until finely chopped, or chop yourself.
  8. Return the risotto to the heat, continue adding remaining stock 1/4 cup at a time until absorbed.  You don't want this to be gluggy, so stop cooking just as the final bit of stock is absorbed. It will still be reasonably wet.
  9. Stir the spinach through the risotto, then add a little bit of butter and the parmesan and stir through.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Squeeze a bit of lime juice through the risotto, again to taste.
  10. Finally, stir through the pieces of beetroot.
  11. Serve in two bowls, and crumble goat's cheese on top.
26.04.10 | Of: , , | In: Food | Leave a comment

Jan 25

Chicken pumpkin and corn risotto

risotto Risotto would have to be one of my favourite meals.  I love mushrooms and I don’t think you can go past a good mushroom risotto.  It’s often the thing I’m most drawn to on Italian menus.

However, when I don’t have mushrooms, I like to play around with my ingredients a bit.  This time around I made a very easy and quick pumpkin, corn and chicken risotto.  I realise now that this made for a very yellow photo!  I hope you like the recipe anyway.

A lot of people have this perception that risotto is hard or very time consuming.  I think this is a bit of a fallacy – it’s not difficult at all, but it is a bit time consuming and you do need to hover around the stove gradually stirring in the stock until it is absorbed.  I am a fan of this method of cooking risotto, but it’s just not practical in summer.  So this is my fallback recipe when I want the comfort of risotto, without having to sweat over the hot stove!

Be warned, this doesn’t produce a risotto with the same texture as if you used the traditional method. But I still love it.  I found the chicken added a nice textural difference, and the corn and pumpkin added a gentle sweetness.  This recipe is cooked without butter, so it is actually quite healthy.  However, if you’re feeling decadent feel free to stir in a spoon of butter once the risotto has finished cooking.

Easy chicken, corn risotto

By: Leah

This is a variation of a Women's Weekly recipe I rely on when I want risotto without having to stand over a hot stove (very important in a Queensland summer!). This time around I added corn, chicken, spinach and pumpkin. You can use any herb you like, this time I used sage, but basil also works really well. The texture won't be exactly the same as a proper risotto, but I still really love it. Also, this makes a fairly thick risotto - if you like yours more runny add some more liquid.
Details
  • Prep Time:
    15 min
  • Cook Time:
    25 min
  • Ready In:
    40 min
Servings: 4 servings
  • 3 cups Vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup Dry white wine
  • 1 tbsp Finely grated lemon rind
  • 1 medium Brown onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped or crushed
  • 1 Chicken breast
  • 200 gs Pumpkin
  • 1 medium Ear of corn, kernels removed
  • 1 1/2 cups Aborio rice
  • 2 tbsps Lemon juice
  • 1 cup Water
  • 100 gs Baby spinach leaves, torn
  • 1/2 cup Finely grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 tbsps Sage, finely shredded
Directions
  1. First, I browned the chicken separately.  I find this enhances the flavour.  I set it aside until later.
  2. Heat 1 tbs of stock with wine and lemon rind in a large saucepan.
  3. Add the onion and garlice and cook, stirring, on a medium heat until the onion softens.  You don't want the temperature too high here as it will burn the onion and garlic - the idea is gentle cooking.
  4. Add the chicken, mushrooms, capsicum, corn (or anything else you feel will be tasty) and cook stirring for another 5 minutes.
  5. Stir in the rice, juice, water and remaining stock.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat.
  6. Simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes until rice is cooked.
  7. Before serving, stir in spinach, cheese and sage.
  8. Serve with salad and crusty bread if you so desire.
25.01.10 | Of: , | In: Food | Leave a comment