You’ve no doubt been reading the previous blog entries of all of the wonderful risottos my fellow comrades in Pomodori E Vino have been creating. They’ve all looked so delicious. It is now my turn for a risotto, and another keeper it is. My version was Risotto with Spring Vegetables, Tomato, and Basil. In this version you saute chopped onion, carrot, celery, and zucchini. You take half of the softened vegetables out of the pan, and then add your rice and begin the stirring process. I used home-made meat broth that I had made previously and frozen. After 25 minutes of adding simmering broth, 1/2 cup at a time, and stirring non-stop, you add back in the other half of the cooked vegetables, diced tomato, and thawed frozen peas. When the rice is tender, you remove from the heat and stir in more butter and grated Parmesan cheese. When all is combined, you then mix in shredded basil.
I really enjoy risotto, and this recipe was another wonderful one. I loved the addition of the fresh tomato and basil. It really made this recipe more fresh and lighter-tasting. Wonderful for spring or summer.
Here’s a close-up of the risotto. Can you tell how creamy it was?