Parsnip, Sage and Mascarpone Risotto

From Vegetarian, Alice Hart, Murdoch Books, 2011.

Recently I have been going through a bit of a risotto binge so the techniques are familiar; it is just the variations that attract me now.

For this one I had made a stock the previous evening from vegetable peelings, corings and cast offs so that was ready to go. It was put on the stove at a very slow simmer.

Into a large frying pan went some butter, a chopped shallot, a grated parsnip and a couple of sage leaves finely sliced. These were sautéed for a few minutes before adding 125 g of Arborio rice. After stirring for about a minute to coat the rice with the buttery vegetable mix some white wine was poured in. Once this had been absorbed the ladling of the stock began, one ladle at a time until it was absorbed.

Once the rice was cooked to al dente it was turned off and a tablespoon of mascarpone was added with grated Parmesan cheese. The lid was placed on and it was left for a couple of minutes before serving with a little more mascarpone and Parmesan.

This was a wonderfully creamy risotto. The parsnip had disintegrated into the sauce and, with the mascarpone added, the result was a soft and creamy risotto with a hint of sweetness from the parsnip.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔