Red Risotto

I first read about tomato risotto in Anna Del Comte's book Italian Cooking.  With tomatoes not being in season when I read it, and the thought coming into my head that this would make a fantastic student recipe, I have written my own recipe for a red risotto using a couple of my Student Storecupboard ingredients from the Marks & Spencer Simply range.

This risotto is rich and warming, perfect for chilly autumn days, and absolutely packed full of nutritious ingredients, surprisingly it is extremely creamy, even though cream nor cheese make an appearance in the recipe.  Must be all that stirring.

Ingredients

•  1 packet risotto rice
• 5 chicken stock cubes (or freshly made stock)
• boiling water
• two tins of chopped tomatoes or a large carton of passata
• 4 cloves of garlic crushed
• bunch of basil leaves torn
• one handful of baby spinach per person to serve
• olive oil
• freshly ground salt and pepper to serve
• parmesan optional

Method

1. Make up 4 pints of stock, and keep on a gentle simmer
2. Fry the tomatoes in a large pan stirring constantly for two minutes
3. Add the chopped garlic and a handful chopped basil, cook for a futher two minutes
4. Add the risotto rice and stir into the tomatoes cook for 1-2 minutes, add a dash of olive oil
5. Add one ladleful of stock at a time, stirring constantly until the rice had absorbed the stock, then add another ladleful until the rice is al-dente (cooked with a slight bite, and puffed up to three times its size) this takes about 15-20 minutes
6. Serve on baby spinach (the heat of the risotto will cause the spinach to whilt) scatter with more torn basil salt and pepper
7. You can add parmesan if you wish, but it isn't necessary

That's it for now ...

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