Vegan Red Pesto Risotto
A vegan red pesto risotto, made of sun-dried tomatoes and topped with cauliflower and pan-seared tomatoes makes for a perfect date night meal. Easy, affordable, delicious, and so, so pretty.
Skip to any part of the recipe by clicking on the links below:
Introduction
Massimo Bottura, owner of a 3 Michelin-starred restaurant in Italy, says that everybody deserves beauty. No matter who we are, what we do, who we know, or how we do it, we all deserve beauty. Some may get to see it more often than others, and some, unfortunately, very seldom see it, but the amount of money we have should not dictate whether we get the keys to open the doors of life’s wonders.
Arborio Rice - $2.97
Red Pesto - $2.67
Cherry Tomatoes - $3.97
Cauliflower - $3.97
2 Packages Vegetable Broth - $3.94
Making a - List
Checking it - Twice
This was the total price of each of the ingredients on my shopping list, of which I used about half of each ingredient, and this recipe feeds 4. The list is affordable - we just have to do some work on our end to throw it all together.
The secret to this recipe is to keep stirring. No matter what. Do not stop stirring. Risotto becomes creamy and luxurious because the grains of arborio rice rub up against each other when we stir the pot, and the friction causes them to release their starches. The starch combines with the vegetable stock, making the risotto creamy. So - keep stirring.
Check out the Spruce it Up section for ideas on how to take this recipe to the next level.
Before we Get Started
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 35 Minutes
Total Time: 50 Minutes
Yield: 4 Servings
Ingredients
1 Onion
3 cloves Garlic
Thyme
2 cup Arborio Rice, uncooked
2L Vegetable Broth
Must be broth, not stock.
I used the packages that come in 900mL portions
8-10 Cherry Tomatoes
1/3 Cauliflower head
Red Pesto
Any kind of pesto works.
Splash of Lemon Juice
Method
Place a pot of water with a splash of vinegar over max heat. Cut your cauliflower head into 1/3s, and cut one of the portions into bite-sized florets.
Grab a bowl, and fill with ice and cold water. Add your cauliflower florets to the pot of boiling water, and cook for 1 minute. Take them out with a slotted spoon, and immediately put them into your bowl of ice and water.
Preheat a small pan over medium-high heat with a small amount of oil. Once it has come to temperature, add your grape tomatoes. Let them sit on one side until they begin to blister and form a dark spot. Flip, and do the same on the other side, then remove and set aside.
Place a sieve over a small bowl, and add 3 tbsp. of red pesto to the sieve. Allow it to sit to drain some of the oil.
You can also dab with some paper towel to remove any excess oil.
Place a pot over high heat and pour in your 2L of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
Finely dice your onion and garlic, and pick the leaves of 3-4 sprigs of thyme. Roughly chop them. Heat a pan over medium heat with oil, and add your onion, garlic and thyme. Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt, and stir. Cook for 3-4 minutes, ensuring the garlic doesn’t burn by stirring every so often.
Once your onion is translucent and your garlic fragrant, add your uncooked arborio rice. Mix about to coat the rice with the oil and incorporate with the onion. Cook for approximately 1 minute, keeping it moving so that the rice doesn’t scorch.
Add 1 ladle of your broth (1 cup) into the pan with your rice, and begin to stir.
From here, we don’t stop stirring.
Continue stirring until all of the broth has disappeared, then add another ladle to the pan. Repeat until you have one ladle of broth left, at which point, take the pan off the heat. Add the last ladle of broth, and continue stirring until the broth has evaporated, and the risotto slowly “falls” onto itself when you run a spoon through it.
Your risotto should be creamy and have a slight bite to it.
Add red pesto and broccoli to the risotto, and mix thoroughly to incorporate. Hit it with two good pinches of salt, and a splash of lemon juice.
Spoon into a bowl, top with a bit more pesto, and your cherry tomatoes. Add a touch more salt and pepper.
Enjoy.
Spruce it Up
Any kind of pesto works. Mix it up with different kinds, or go with the original.
For an extra touch of flair and depth of flavour, add a 1/2 cup of white wine to the pan before adding your first ladle of stock.
Herbs like basil work so well with tomatoes and risotto.