Risotto Stuffed Ramiro Peppers

Free from:

Eggs

Dairy

Gluten

Wheat

Serves 4

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cooking Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

For the peppers:

• 2 stock cubes dissolved in 1 litre of water
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 leek, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 50ml white wine
• 1 lemon zest
• 150g curly kale, chopped
• 250g arborio rice
• 150g frozen peas
• to taste freshly ground salt & black pepper
• 6 tbsp olive tapenade*
• 8 straight, red Ramiro peppers
• 20 small cherry tomatoes on the vine (5 per person)

For the quick oriental salad:

• 1 block (400g) of plain tofu, cut into strips
• 200g Mange tout sliced thinly lengthways
• 1 cucumber cut into ribbons
• 100g chestnut mushrooms, cut as thinly as you can
• 50g sesame seeds
• 1 tsp soya sauce

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C. Put the vegetable stock into a saucepan and simmer.
2. Fry the leek in a little oil for 5 minutes until softened in a large, wide frying pan. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
3. Fry the leek in a little oil for 5 minutes until softened in a large, wide frying pan. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
4. Add the white wine, lemon zest and rice to the pan and make sure that the rice is well coated. Cook until the wine has been soaked up by the rice. Now ladle some of the stock over the rice and stir.
5. Steam the kale for 5 minutes, run under cold water, drain and set to one side.
6. Cut the tops of the Ramiro peppers and stuff with the risotto followed by a tsp of the tapenade. Repeat this for all the peppers until they are filled. You will have risotto left for serving. Set the remaining risotto to one side, reheat just before serving.
7. Add the white wine, lemon zest and rice to the pan and make sure that the rice is well coated. Cook until the wine has been soaked up by the rice. Now ladle some of the stock over the rice and stir.
8. To make the salad: simply mix all the ingredients together with a splash of soya sauce.
9. As the stock is absorbed by the rice keep topping up with more hot stock from the saucepan and keep stirring. It should take about 15-20 minutes and the risotto should have a creamy consistency when the rice is cooked. You may not need all the stock depending on the size of pan used. Add the peas and wilted kale to the risotto about 5 minutes towards the end. Season to taste.

* You can make your own tapenade by blending 30g olives, 1 tsp capers, 2 tsp olive oil and 1 tsp dried oregano.

Copyright © the Vegetarian Society 2010