In Conspiracy with Seitan

Mushroom and pea risotto w/ roasted pumpkin and asparagus

Firstly, apologies for the shitty quality of this photo. I had to use a webcam, as I am without a camera for a couple of days. Hopefully you get the idea!

My mother taught me how to make risotto, and it is easily my favourite food. This recipe is flavoured by a lot of wine, the mushrooms, and of course stock. The result is a creamy, delicious dish.

I found the method a little hard to write out as it involves a lot of testing and "best judgment," along with constant stirring, as all risotto-makers know! I tried though! Serves 8-10 people.

Ingredients:
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 pumpkin (chopped into bite-size pieces)
2 cups of mushrooms
Small bunch of asparagus
1½ cups frozen peas
2 cups of arborio rice
Sauvignon blanc
1 litre vegetable stock
¾ cup of olive oil (for roasting and sautéing)
2 tbsp soy sauce

- Preheat oven to 180°c. Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, lightly cover in olive oil, and bake until tender and crisp.
- In a large pot on medium heat, sautée the onion & garlic in olive oil until brown. Stir the arborio rice into the onion, cooking for 1 minute.
- Turn the heat up to high, adding 500g of stock to the rice and stirring until absorbed. Add the other 500g and repeat. Do not stop stirring. Ever.
- Now, add 2 cups of water to the rice. Once the water has absorbed, repeat this step.
- Add about a 1/4 bottle of wine & the frozen peas.
- Keep adding water until the rice is about 3/4 cooked, then add the mushrooms & soy sauce.
- Add more wine (according to taste) or water, until all of the liquid is absorbed, and the rice is really creamy
- Let the pot sit for about 5 minutes, and steam the asparagus.
- Serve the risotto on top of the roast pumpkin, garnishing with asparagus, fresh parsley and pepper.