Beetroot and red wine risotto with goat cheese and rocket

Some people ask me "Mel, what's your signature dish?". I do not know how to react to that seemingly simple question. It's similar to asking someone to name his favourite movie: I usually can't think of anything in a total black out, or find myself in total indecisiveness, when hundreds of movies suddenly pop into my mind at the same time. I learned that some people like one answer: A or B, black or white, Messi or Ronaldo, pasta or potatoes. A possibility between both options simply does not exist and having more than one favourite is absolutely out of the ordinary. Those people got me wondering about which one dish defines me... And you know what? I can't choose... I narrowed my options down to a few, which I already think is a big achievement, and I realised that perhaps this is a good opportunity to let those A-or-B type of people be surprised. Instead of me downsizing my list of favourite recipies, let them upsize their openness to all the deliciousness the world has to offer :-).

So, ladies and gentlemen, I am happy to present to you on this blog: MANY of my favourite recipes!

May you enjoy for example my newest dish: a beetroot risotto with goat cheese, walnuts and rocket salad. A dish which is based on existing recipies, but twisted with my own inspiration. It's a secret pleasure and a delight to cook and taste! The sweetness of the beetroot combines perfectly with the richness of the goat cheese and nutty rocket salad. Add a few walnuts for the crispy bite, et voilá... Here is a dish to add to your list of favourites! Bon appetit..








Ingredients 2 persons:
* 100 gr. of rocket salad
* 400 grams of beetroot
* 200 grams of risotto
* 1/2 cup of red wine
* chicken stock
* 1 red onion
* about 180 grams of soft goat cheese
* Handful of chopped walnuts
* Olive oil

Spice it up with:
* fresh thyme
* fresh rosemary
* salt and pepper

Preparation and cooking instructions:
1) Chop the onion delicately and fry it in a pan with olive oil until the onions become soft and glazed.


2) Add the risotto and keep steering for about 3-4 minutes. Then add a generous splash of red wine, until the risotto is covered and soaking up the taste and colour of the wine. Add half of the chopped beetroot to the mixture in the pan.

3) Boil water and add it to the chicken stock in a bowl. Add half of the chopped beetroot and mix all the ingredients well with a hand mixer.

4) Add the mixture to the risotto, one spoon at a time. Make sure that the risotto is moist and covered with the liquid mixture of stock and red beet, keep steering until the risotto has absorbed almost all of the liquid. Then it's time to add the second spoon. Continue with adding liquid until the risotto has become soft (taste it!) or the stock has been used up fully. Make sure you are steering the pan the entire time, so that the risotto does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

5) Add freshly chopped thyme and rosemary to the risotto and season the mixture with salt and pepper.

6) Plate up by covering the plates with a layer of rocket salad. Then add the beetroot risotto mixture on top. Finish off by adding drops of goat cheese (which will start melting as soon as they touch the warm risotto) and chopped walnuts to the dish.


Music: Bob Marley - Red, red wine