Tonight we made risotto, which is one of my favourites. For ages I never made it as I’d been told it was really difficult. Well this recipe is so tasty and easy, I wish I’d made it years ago.

This batch of risotto is larger than normal as we need to save back some for another dish called Arancini later in the week.
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Breakfast
Toast and jam or peanut butter

Lunch
Leftover butter beans stew or soup

Dinner
Pea & lemon risotto

Snacks
Date brownies

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RECIPE

Easy Pea and Lemon Risotto

Ingredients

1 litre of fresh, hot vegetarian stock
250ml white wine (optional)
Extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced small
2 sticks celery cut finely
2 carrots, peeled and diced
350g Arborio risotto rice
50g freshly grated Vegan cheese (optional)
Salt and pepper
3 handfuls of frozen peas
1 lemon for zest and juice
Handful of finely chopped mint or parsely

Method

Firstly heat your stock, either boiling a kettle for the gluten free stock cube or warming your homemade stock in a pan.

Next with a good splash of oil in a deep frying pan soften your chopped onions, carrots and celery for 15 minutes or so. Add the rice and turn up the heat to cook for a minute stirring so as not to let it catch on the pan.

Add the wine if you’re using it and cook for about a minute then start adding the stock a ladle full at a time and stirring very gently.

You are waiting for each addition of stock to be absorbed before adding the next one. Stir every so often to stop it sticking.

The rice should take around 18-20 minutes to cook, with regular additions of stock and a little stirs. The grains should still have a little bite to them. The dish itself will become lovely and creamy. Add more water if you need to.

When the rice is nearly ready add the peas, chopped mint, lemon zest and juice.

Just before serving add the cheese and give it another stir to help it melt through the rice then season to taste.

Save back at least a third of the risotto for another dish later in the week.

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Raw Brownies

Makes about 8 inch square tray cut into 12

Ingredients

250g of pitted dates
125g mixed nuts
30g cocoa powder

Method

Simply blend all the ingredients in a food processor.

Remove the mixture and flatten it into a small tray lined with baking parchment to about 2cm deep, then leave in the fridge until cool.

Chop into squares and enjoy guilt free.