Mushroom, Courgette & Kidney Bean Risotto!

Back home, and into a kitchen that contains FOOD. It's a joy, and I offered to cook without really knowing what I was going to cook. Eventually it turned into a very successful and tasty risotto (if I do say so myself). Despite only being the second risotto I've ever made, I didn't follow any recipe (or even use risotto rice), and its actually quite straightforward - it just takes a while, because you have to simmer it for a bit. Anywho, enjoyez!

Serves: 4 (cooking for the whole famalam this time!)
Time: 60-75 minutes
Ingredients:

• 200g brown rice
• Medium onion
• Clove of garlic
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Splash of dry Martini
• 1 pint vegetable stock*
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3-4 closed cup mushrooms
• 1 courgette
• 1 tin kidney beans, drained
• Grated cheese
• Salad leaves (just get a bag of pre-prepared leaves, way easier)
• 1 lemon
• Salt/pepper

Crafting your risotto:

1. Dice the onion and garlic. Heat the oil in a large saucepan, and fry the onion/garlic for a couple of minutes until softened.
2. Add the rice to the pan and stir it all together, coating the rice. 
3. Add the stock, the parsley/oregano and the splash of Martini (if you have any) - don't add too much, it can be an overpowering flavour. Bring the whole mixture up to the boil, then turn the heat right down and leave it to simmer for about 45 minutes.
4. While the rice mixture is simmering away, slice up your vegetables into relatively small pieces. Put them to one side for now. You've probably got some time to kill now, so just make sure everything's ready - kidney beans drained, cheese grated, salad ready, and slice up the lemon, allowing half a slice per serving (see the pic).
5. You'll know the rice mixture is done when the liquid has reduced right down, so that it's more of a creamy coating rather than a full-blown sauce. At this point, throw in the vegetables and beans and stir it all through. Add the cheese right before you serve, mix it in, whack it on the plate/in the bowl (again, see pic) and serve with the salad. 
6. A spot of salt and pepper on top of the risotto, as well as a drizzle of lemon juice, will give this the perfect spot of flavour. 

If you enjoyed reading this, please share it around your social medias, and if you've gone as far as attempting it, let me know how it went! x

*I've found the easiest thing to make this up is using Knorr veggie stock pots - basically little jelly pots that you just add hot water to, then mix it up until its dissolved. Voila. But as if Marco Pierre White actually uses them in his restaurants...