Roasted Pumpkin Barley Risotto

I love a good risotto, but was looking for something other than rice to cook with.  Finding some pot barley in the cupboard, I figured it was worth a go.  It gave a lovely nutty flavour.  This recipe would work well with just about any vegetable and you could also add some diced chicken if you fancied.

Roasted Pumpkin Barley Risotto

Ingredients

1/2 medium to large butternut pumpkin - cubed

Olive oil

Ground coriander

1 cup pot barley, (or pearl barley if you prefer)

4 garlic cloves - thinly sliced

4 tbsp dry white wine

4 cups vegetable stock, (or chicken stock if preferred) 

8 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

2 tbsp butter

1 small bunch parsley - finely chopped

Method

1.  Preheat oven to 190 degrees C.

2.  Toss the pumpkin with a splash of oil, a good shake of ground coriander and a little salt & pepper.  Spread in 1 layer in a baking tray and roast, stirring occasionally, until tender and well-browned, approx. 20-30 minutes.

3.  While pumpkin is roasting, toast barley in a dry pot over medium heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and golden, approx. 5-10 mins.  Transfer to a bowl.

4.  Cook garlic in another splash of oil, over medium heat, stirring, until pale golden, approx. 1-2 mins.  Add barley, stirring to coat.  Add wine and simmer briskly, stirring, until absorbed, approx. 1 min.

5*.  Add the warm stock, stirring and bring to the boil.  Pop a lid on the pot and turn down to simmer.  Allow to cook for approx. 30-40 mins, stirring occasionally, until barley is just tender and creamy looking.

6.  Stir in the pumpkin, cheese, butter and season to taste.  Stir in parsley.

Notes* 

At stage 5, instead of adding all the stock at once, you could cook this like a standard rice risotto as follows:... 

Add 1/2 cup stock and briskly simmer, stirring, until absorbed.  Continue simmering and adding hot broth, about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and letting each addition be absorbed before adding the next, until barley is just tender and creamy looking, approx. 30 mins.  (I use the other method because I generally have other things to do rather than standing over the hob for that long!)

Enjoy!

Caryl  ♥

Prawns and Samphire Risotto

Having discovered the deliciousness and goodness of samphire recently, I've been playing around with different ways of serving it.  Samphire is also known as sea asparagus and is becoming very well-known as another superfood.  It's actually lovely served with butter and lemon, alongside a piece of fish, but tonight I had other plans.

Prawns and Samphire Risotto

Ingredients

3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion - finely chopped
2 large cloves garlic - finely chopped
5-1/2 cups or so of stock - (see note*)
1-1/2 cups Carnaroli rice - (or any other type of risotto rice)
1/2 cup white wine
1 large clove garlic - finely chopped
1 small chilli - finely chopped
350g raw prawns
100g samphire - rinsed in cold water
grated parmesan
black pepper
lemon

Note*:  The stock I used for this was actually the cooking water from a bunch of asparagus I cooked the other day.  You could use any fish or vegetable stock though. 

Also, I made this risotto a little drier than usual.  If you like yours more wet, add more stock.

Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a large pan and fry the onion until soft and lightly browned.  Add the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes.

Add the rice and stir well until all the grains are coated with the butter.

Add the wine, stir, and simmer until it has been absorbed.

This is where I cheat a bit, as in traditional risottos it is recommended to add about 1/2 cup of stock and stir until absorbed, then repeat, until all the stock has been added.  

What I do instead is add all the stock, stir really well and bring to a boil.  Then turn down to a simmer and pop a lid on top until all the stock has been absorbed and the rice is soft, but with a little bite - approx. 20 minutes.  Check and stir once in a while and add more stock if needed.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining 1 tbsp of butter in a large frying pan.  Add the garlic and chilli and cook for 1 minute.

Add the prawns, stir and cook for about a minute or so.  You will see them turn a lovely pink colour.  Remove the prawns with a slotted spoon and add the samphire to the pan.  Stir for a minute or so and remove from the heat.

When rice is ready, gently stir the prawns and samphire into the risotto.  Add a good sprinkling of parmesan cheese, black pepper and a squeeze of lemon and stir again.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥

Mushroom & Chard Risotto

I love mushrooms anytime and in a risotto they are particularly delicious.  Thank you to my mother-in-law for the fresh chard that came straight from her garden. :)

Ingredients

Butter
400g brown mushrooms - quartered
1 bunch spring onions - sliced
250g Carnaroli rice
750ml chicken stock (approx)
1 large handful chard - roughly chopped
Parmesan - grated
Lemon


Melt a knob of butter in a large pan.  Throw in the mushrooms and spring onions.  Stir until the mushrooms start to lose their juices.

Add the rice and stir well, until each grain is well coated.

Normally I would add a glug of white wine at this stage, but I only had a glass left and was enjoying it too much. :)

Pour in the stock.  Stir and bring to the boil.  Pop the lid on and reduce to simmer.  Stir every now and then, until liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender - approx. 30 minutes or so.

Add the chard and stir until it just starts to wilt.

Grate some parmesan over and stir in.  Squeeze some lemon juice over and stir.  Season to taste.

Serve and enjoy!

Caryl ♥