If you’re in need of a super healthy week night dinner, give this delicious risotto and courgette recipe a go – it’s great for vegetarians too. Packed courgettes, artichokes and petit pois, it’s got plenty of your five-a-day in and tastes really creamy thanks to the butter and Parmesan cheese. What more could you want?
Ingredients
- 25g (1oz) butter, plus a little extra
- 1tbsp olive oil
- 4 small shallots, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 250g (9oz) Arborio rice
- splash dry white wine
- 900ml (1½pt) vegetable stock, boiling
- 400g (14oz) baby courgettes, sliced
- 195g (7oz) chargrilled artichokes
- 100g (4oz) frozen petit pois
- 4tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
Method
Melt the butter with the olive oil in a large, solid saucepan. Add the shallots and let them sweat for a few minutes. Next add the garlic, stir for a minute then add the rice with a good pinch of salt. Keep stirring the rice until it’s well coated in the oil and butter. Add the wine and bubble for a minute or two. Now add the stock a ladle at a time, keeping the heat medium. Stir and stir until the rice has absorbed the stock, then add another ladle.
After about 15 minutes, the rice will be nearly cooked but still slightly hard. Now add the vegetables, more stock and keep stirring for a few more minutes until the rice is perfectly cooked (it should be soft but with just a bit of bite). Take it off the heat, and add half the Parmesan and a knob of butter. Cover and let it stand for a few minutes. Dish into warmed bowls with extra Parmesan on the side.
