COURGETTE RISOTTO

Today, we have been to Chelsea for some shopping, as we do almost every week-end. We love sitting at the cafe' in Duke of York Square while Niki rides his scooter and Sebastian eats all my Pain au Chocolat and drinks all my Chai Latte. And then after going for a stroll along King's Road we often end up in Rosso Pomodoro in Fulham Road for a pizza. Then another stroll... and we're back home at 5.30 pm. It's already time to cook dinner for the kids ... but I have no ideas...and the fridge is almost empty...I found a courgette, so I decided to make Courgette risotto. As Niki doesn't like it very much (he's in the phase NO VEGETABLES FOR ME pls!) I decided to use the Ikea cookie cutters to make the risotto more appetizing. And...surprise surprise...it worked!Finished in no time!!!

Recipe for 4:

12 spoons of Carnaroli rice
2 courgettes
Some chopped onion (the quantity depends on how much you like it!)
1 liter vegetable stock
Fresh chopped parsley and some chopped mint (optional)
Olive oil
Grated parmesan


Place the stock into a large pan over a medium heat and bring to the boil, then turn the heat down as low as it will go, to keep the stock hot but without letting it reduce too much. Otherwise, if you are in a hurry, just bring some water to the boil and when the rice is in the pan just pour it in the pan (a bit at a time) adding half a stock-cube (or a couple of teaspoons of the granulated one).

Heat some olive oil in a wide pan over a low to moderate heat. When hot, add the onion. Using a grater, coarsely grate the courgettes. Add them to the pan with the onion and fry gently, without browning, until both are tender. Add the rice and stir for 30-60 seconds to mix well. The rice should become translucent. Season the risotto with salt (if it is for the kids I avoid using pepper). Keep adding the stock/water in the same way, stirring as frequently as you can, until the rice is cooked al dente (that is, tender but still with a slight resistance to the bite). This will take 20 minutes or more. At this point, the risotto should still be fairly wet; when the rice is cooked, stir the the chopped herbs (keeping aside a sprinkling for serving the final dish) into the risotto and cook for a further 1-2 minutes to heat through. Finally, stir in a bit of butter and some grated parmesan.

To create the animal shapes (or any other shape) just place the cookie cutter on the plate and pour the risotto inside. Take it carefully away ... and dinner is served!!!!!