Pesto Risotto with Balsamic Strawberries
Serves: 6-8 servings
 
Ingredients
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1½ c arborio rice
  • ⅓ c white wine
  • 6 c vegetable broth
  • 1½ c sliced strawberries
  • 1½ t balsamic vinegar
  • ¼ c Parmesan cheese
  • 2 T butter
  • squirt of fresh lemon
  • ½ c pesto
  • optional toasted pine nuts and basil for garnish
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 425°. Place a dutch oven* over a medium flame and heat olive oil. Add onions. Season with sea salt and pepper and saute for about 4 minutes, until they become soft and translucent. Stir often to avoid browning. Add garlic and saute for another minute, until you can just smell it. Add the rice and stir for about 3 minutes, until rice is toasty. Add wine. Stir. Add 5½ cups of broth and continue stirring for another minute.
  2. Place the lid on your dutch oven and put it in the oven for 18 minutes. No peeking. In the meantime, slice the strawberries and macerate them in vinegar with a hint of sea salt as well. If using pine nuts, toast them now and set aside.
  3. Take risotto out of the oven and place it over a medium flame. Remove the lid. Stir in the remaining broth, butter and cheese. Stir and cook another 3-5 minutes, until risotto is cooked through and has reached the desired creaminess. Turn off heat. Add lemon juice and pesto. Stir until well-combined. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve immediately, spooning strawberries as a garnish and sprinkling with pine nuts and basil if you have them. Enjoy
Notes
* You don't need a dutch oven for this recipe; you can also make it stove top. To do that, heat your broth until simmering. Add it ladle by ladle to the rice, stirring and waiting for the rice to absorb the broth before adding more. Adjust your temperature so that this will take 22 minutes. If you try to bake this without a dutch oven, the heat will not distribute properly and you probably won't be happy with the results.
Recipe by Mamaguru at http://mamaguru.com/pesto-risotto-with-balsamic-strawberries/