One of the good things about being known to love cooking is that, on occasions, you get offered ingredients that other people don’t want. I confess I rarely buy beetroot, not because I don’t like it, because I do, but more likely because it makes a bit of a mess, being so ridiculously bright in colour.  On this occasion, I didn’t have to buy any, being offered a couple from Mrs A’s leftover organic veg box.

Ever since reading a recipe on making a purple, Beetroot risotto (again, a ridiculous colour for any foodstuff), I always had it in the back of my mind to cook it, so I knew I couldn’t let these beetroot go to waste.

Recipe for Purple (Beetroot) Risotto (for two):

2 small beetroot

200g risotto rice (I prefer carnaroli)

600ml veg or chicken stock

1 medium onion

2 cloves garlic

leaves from 2 twigs of Thyme

50ml white wine

glug of Olive oil

Heat a saucepan with the oil over a medium heat, then finely chop the onion and add to the pan. Slice the garlic and add to the pan after a couple of minutes, reduce the heat to low and cook until soft (about 10 mins). Heat up the stock in a saucepan and keep on a low heat. Peel and dice the beetroot. Add the rice to the saucepan and stir for a minute, before adding the thyme leaves and wine. Once the rice has absorbed the wine, add the beetroot & put a ladleful of stock in. Once the rice has absorbed the stock, repeat the adding of a ladleful stock with the rice absorbing it, until you’ve run out of stock. Taste the rice and if done, serve, but if the rice is still a bit hard, add some hot water or more stock and taste again in a few minutes, until the rice is done. You can serve with either grated pecorino or parmesan or dispense with these and add a swirl of yoghurt instead.

I don’t think you can beat the visual impact of this dish, but it tasted alright too. I didn’t add the yoghurt but think it would have benefited from a bit of sharpness. The risotto was nothing special and quite plain, but hearty & warming and certainly not a dish I’d shy away from cooking again (as long as I didn’t have to do the washing up, that is!).