Ingredients
Serves: 4
- 80g butter
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 sprig of fresh sage or thyme
- 400g Arborio risotto rice
- 200ml cider
- 1.2 litres hot chicken stock
- 12 Brussels sprouts, shredded
- 100g Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 red apple, cored and cut into small batons
For the parsnips:
- 2 parsnips
- A drizzle of rapeseed oil
- 1 tbsp golden brown sugar
- A pinch of mixed spice
Method
- Preheat oven to 185 Degrees Celsius.
- Melt half of the butter in a heavy-based pot. When the butter starts to foam, add the onion and sage or thyme. Cover the pot with a lid, turn down the heat and cook gently for 15 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent but with no colour.
- Meanwhile, peel the parsnips, then cut each into six, lengthways. Put them in a roasting tin with the oil, sugar, mixed spice and seasoning. Turn together until everything is coated, then bake in the oven for 20 minutes, turning once or twice, until they are sticky and golden. Keep warm.
- Add the rice to the onion, stirring to coat everything in the butter, then add the cider. Bring to a simmer, then add half of the hot stock and some salt and pepper. Cook over a low heat until the liquid has nearly evaporated, stirring once or twice.
- Add the sprouts to the pot along with half of the remaining stock and bring to a careful simmer once more. From this point on you will have to do a little more stirring.
- When the stock has evaporated, the sprouts should be almost cooked and so should the rice. You will have to check the texture of the rice. It needs to have a tiny bit of bite. Add more stock to loosen the risotto. It should be a little runny in the pot and not sit in a mound when you stir it.
- Dice the remaining butter and add it to the pot along with most of the Parmesan, stirring to combine.
- Divide the risotto among warm plates and scatter over the remaining Parmesan, followed by the parsnips and lastly the apple batons. Serve straightaway.
