you eat no meat? it’s ok – I make Pea and mint Risotto

I am forever on the lookout for some vegetarian recipes… I think that I only have THREE tried and tested vegetarian main meals written in my recipe book…  This, a pumpkin lasagna and . This of course does not include all the veggie sides, salads and soups I have tried and blogged about…

I remember (back in the day), when you invited someone around for dinner – a typical South African household would be cooking up some form of meat or chicken – and absolute pandemonium would erupt when an announcement was made that one of the guests was Vegetarian – you can’t just give them a plate of cauliflower & cheese or a side plate of green salad (can we????).

And the current trend of *health freaks* (no offense intended… well not really) means that people are now meat-free, gluten-free, alcohol-free, hold the butter, no cream and worst of all… those that get up at 5am EVERYDAY to run 6million kilometres…. *sigh* (just ignore my little rant – I am actually just jealous!)

I originally found this recipe in the *Weight Watchers: Cook Smart simply suppers* (Easy, Healthy recipes for fabulous evening meals – pg 128) and have cooked it on numerous occasions for Veggies and Meat eaters alike… and although there is a bit of effort required in the *one ladle* at a time and constant stirring… it does make a nice din-din’s… but not something that can be kept for leftovers (it seems to turn into a bit of glutenous starchy porridge when it gets cold)… SO EAT UP!

Risotto is essentially Italian in origin, and emphasises rice dishes that are cooked in a broth until creamy in consistency! Most risotto dishes contain butter, onion and parmesan cheese (and of course the specific risotto rice – my personal favourite is the Arborio rice).

PEA and MINT Risotto

850ml vegetable stock

250g pea’s

4 Tablespoons fresh mint

1 large onion

1 leek

2 garlic cloves

240g Risotto Rice

150ml dry white wine

15g parmesan cheese

1. heat stock & half the pea’s
2. scoop the pea’s out with a slotted spoon & transfer to food processor; processed until puree and set aside.
3. Fry onion & leek for 2min, adding half a ladle of stock
4. Add garlic and fry for a further minute
5. Add rice and stir until coated (this is called *tostatura*)

6. 

   stir in the wine to coat all those gorgeous little granules of risotto rice 🙂

7. pour in wine and bring to the boil
8. reduce heat and simmer until wine is absorbed and alcohol smell disappears
9. Add 1 ladle of stock at at time, simmer and stirring constantly.
10. Stir in pea’s & pea puree & heat through.
11. Serve with mint

12. 

    served with mint and a few wedges of lemon... YUM

4.5pt per portions for  Weight Watchers… and this makes 4 portions