Here’s winter flavours with more creative idea and different ingredients for risotto.  With Corona Virus still hanging in, meat are also expensive because of shortage in delivering them to Supermarket. I know having meat meal is a good source of protein, and calcium for strong bones.

We can still get other supplements that are much healthy like green vegetables which is great and affordable. Just because the weather is cold and grizzly, and no meat doesn’t mean you can’t cook a comfort, healthy meal using food from pantry, fridge and cheap in your own home.

Today, I found a new vegetable called Caulini. Google: “Caulini has long stems, like broccolini, but it’s “blonde” in colour like cauliflower. (And, in case you’re wondering, it’s non-GMO and there are zero additives or preservatives.) It can be fried, roasted, steamed, grilled, blanched, or eaten raw in salads”. Let’s be bold, cook it in risotto. Are you in or are you out?

Being bold, I am trying it out by adding it into my risotto pecorino, beans, celery and green capsicum. This risotto is nutritious, delicious, sweetly juicy with nuttiness of cauliflower, comfort, hearty and a warming main where I can seat near the fireplace and eat while watching tv. Let’s cook!!!!

Ingredients

3 cups hot vegetables stock
1 cup white wine
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
500 g Caulini, stems cut into bite size; a little stem with the flowers, separate
300 g arborio rice
125 g broad beans, frozen, thawed
3 stalks celery cut into small bite
half green capsicum, cubed
100 g pecorino, grated, plus extra about 20-30 g
30 g butter
Olive oil
black pepper
chili flakes (OPT)

Method

Bring stock on pot to a simmer on low heat. Heat oil and butter in a large cast iron pan over medium low heat. Add onion, garlic and caulini stems to sweat about 12-15 minutes, or until soft. Now add rice in to the pan; stir well and toast for about 3 minutes.

Next add a ladle of hot stock to rice and stir until stock has been absorbed. Continue to add ladleful of stock and then add wine until rice is cooked it will take about 20-22 minutes. 

Note: On the last ladle of stock add caulini flowers and celery in. Then add beans and green capsicum for the final 5 minutes of cooking. Now add pecorino, and drizzle about 1 Tbs oil.

Stir well and off the heat. Cover with lid and leave to rest about 5 minutes. Serve sprinkled with chili flakes and extra pecorino. Delicious with a glass of sweet wine.

https://helenscchin.com/2020/06/23/risotto-pecorino-with-caulini-beans-celery-green-capsicum/

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