Beetroot Risotto

This is a very fashionable combination at the moment and you'll find lots of restaurants serving some form of beetroot and goats cheese. Some people find the very bright colour of this risotto a little unpalatable but I love it, the flavour is delicate and sweet and goes so well with the salty goats cheese.

This dish would be a talking point at a dinner party!

Lots of people are scared of making risotto, but they needn't be. It doesn't need constant stirring - just a little attention.

The recipe below serves 4 - to increase you can just add an additional 100g risotto rice per person and increase the stock accordingly.

Beetroot Risotto with Goats Cheese
4 large raw beetroot
2 tbsps good olive oil
1 onion
400g risotto rice
1 small glass red wine
1 litre vegetable stock
1 small bunch fresh thyme
25g goats cheese

1. Chop the beetroot into bit bitesize pieces. Drizzle with one tablespoon of the olive oil and a pinch of salt, then put in the oven to roast at 180 degrees for 20 minutes, shaking a couple of times throughout the cooking process.
2. Chop the onion and add to a casserole dish with the rest of the oil, and cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes before adding the risotto rice.
3. Stir for 30 seconds and then add the wine.
4. When most of the wine has been absorbed, begin to add the stock bit by bit, stirring fairly often to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
5. When you have added half of the stock, add the chopped leaves of the thyme then continue adding the stock.
6. After the beetroot has cooked for 20 minutes, add it and any cooking juices to the risotto. Continue adding the stock bit by bit.
7. When all of the stock has been added and the risotto is deliciously gloopy, turn the heat off and put the lid on the pan for 5 minutes.
8. To serve, top with a spoonful of goats cheese. Enjoy!