Whenever I make this,
the children shout with glee ‘Hurray – melty mozzarella!’ and every single bit
gets gobbled up. Which is a shame as Veggie Dad and I hardly get a look in.
It’s based on Hugh
Fearnley Whatnot’s Tomato and Mozzarella Risotto from my current favourite
cookbook River Cottage Veg Everyday, but I tweaked it a bit, and made my own
tomato sauce. Hugh reckons it “carries a faint evocation of childhood tinned
tomato soup – in a good way”. And indeed, it really is the Heinz Cream of
Tomato of the risotto world.
Big Veggie Girl’s
review: “Absolutely delicious”. Little Veggie Girl’s review: “Really nice”.
Both asked for seconds. A result, methinks.
Melty Mozz Risotto
1 litre veg stock
Glug of olive oil
1 onion, chopped
really, really small for fusspot children
300g risotto rice
1 ball mozzarella,
ripped into tiny pieces (great job for the kiddos to help with)
Salt and pepper – the
posh variety
1.
Heat the
oil and fry the onion until soft.
2.
Add the
rice and stir for a couple of minutes until the grains look slightly
see-through on the edge.
3.
Add some
stock and listen to those grains sizzle-sigh with relief.
4.
Stir,
wander off and attend to a crying baby/squabbling siblings/small person who has
fallen over, add some more stock… repeat until all the stock is absorbed (about
20 minutes).
5.
Stir in
your slow roasted tomato sauce (see below) and heat through. Season.
6.
Take off
the heat and stir in your mozzarella pieces so they start to melt in the
risotto.
My slow roasted tomato sauce
8 tomatoes, cut into
quarters
3 garlic cloves,
sliced
Good splodge of
balsamic vinegar
Good splodge of olive
oil
12 basil leaves
1 Tbsp sugar
Few grindings of sea
salt
1.
Stick it
all in an ovenproof dish
2.
Give it a
stir
3.
Whack it
the oven at 150c for one hour
4.
Turn the
oven off and leave it in until cool
5.
Whizz it
all up. Easy as.
