Beetroot risotto

Risotto is a wonderful warming dish for wintery evenings, and this version, with its dark pink rice and creamy white goats cheese, is pretty to look at too.

Ingredients: 

• 50g Butter
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 250g Risotto rice
• 150ml White wine
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 300g beetroot
• 1 Lemon, zested and juiced
• A small bunch of flat-leaf parsley a small bunch, roughly chopped
• 125g Soft goat’s cheese 125g
• A handful of walnuts, toasted and chopped

Method:

1. Peel and chop the beetroot, then place in a pan of boiling salted water and simmer until al dente, 20-30 minutes.
2. Melt the butter in a deep frying pan and cook the onion with some seasoning for 10 minutes until soft. Tip in the rice and stir until every grain is coated, then pour in the wine and bubble for 5 minutes. Add the stock a ladle at a time, while stirring, only adding more once the previous batch has been absorbed.
3. Meanwhile, take 1/2 the beetroot and whizz in a small blender until smooth, and chop the remainder.
4. Once the rice is cooked, stir through the whizzed and chopped beetroots, lemon zest and juice, and most of the parsley. Divide between plates and top with a crumbling of goat’s cheese, the walnuts and remaining parsley