Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Broccoli-lemon risotto with honey



I love risotto. It's one of my favorite things to eat, and to make. I don't really remember when I first tried it - but I do know that I've never had one fail. They all turn out excellent - every single one.

The other night, I was sort of wanting to make the Citrus Risotto with seared Garlic-Chili Shrimp that Linda wrote about (and I still DO want to make that) but I didn't have a lot of the ingredients. So. I invented. And this is what I came up with:

Broccoli-lemon risotto with honey

2 dl (3/4 cup + 1 tbsp, roughly) risotto rice (I use arborio)
1 l good stock (chicken or vegetable)
1 small bunch of broccoli, divded into florets
1 onion, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
100 g mushrooms, diced
2 tbsp sherry
1 tbsp honey
the peel of a lemon, shredded
the juice of half a lemon
a good handful grated parmesan
black pepper
olive oil
butter

Bring the stock to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large pan, melt butter and a glug of olive oil. Fry onion and garlic gently on medium heat for about five minutes. Add the rice, crank up the heat, and fry until it gets a bit of color. Add the sherry, and let it cook into the rice. Add the stock, gradually, as you would with any risotto. I never measure how long my risotto really takes, but somewhere from 15-20 minutes is a good estimate. You may not need all the stock, and you may need more. (And yes, warm water will do in a pinch.)

After about five minutes of stock-adding, add the mushrooms. After another five, add the broccoli. When the rice is done - chewy, not crunchy - remove from heat and add lemon juice, lemon peel, freshly ground black pepper and honey. Add the parmesan. And that's it. We had it with chicken, but it's good on its own too. (That's what I had for lunch the next day.) The recipe was enough for dinner for two very hungry, and a leftover lunch.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

We love risotto. My wife is the risotto cook at our house. This recipe sounds great. The honey is a unique addition.

Scott
http://scotthutcheson.typepad.com

Danno said...

Wow, that looks great! I'm absolutely starving right now and that didn't help. :) I love the use of sherry & honey, very cool!

Nic said...

Hi Anne. Risotto is one of those things that I'll usually order in a restaurant, but have never made myself. Since I love anything with broccoli... this is going on my "to make soon" list!

Gaia said...

Anne, have you ever tried one of the best italian risotto: "Risotto allo Zafferano"? risotto and saffron...
gaia

Anne said...

Scott - I actually use honey in most of my risottos. It seems to go really well with the nuttiness of the rice. My fave risotto is a beet risotto - I have to make that soon and blog about it!

Danno - sherry is a crucial ingredient :)

Nic - you must try! It's really easy to make it yourself, and a lot of fun, too.

Gaia - I have! And I love it. Although I wonder if that's what touted as Risotto Milanese? Or is that another version?

Anonymous said...

I just found your blog, and every single recipe looks absolutely delicious. I'm going to print out a few of my favorites and try them all out. This is like a recipe book from heaven. And i'm Swedish too :) Thank you!!

K.A.