My nephew celebrated his 21st Birthday at Cafe Zoe,in Mumbai a couple of weeks ago.The entire family was invited to a sit down lunch.Cafe Zoe is a cosy resto downtown and serves up a great European fare.It’s amongst my favorite places for lunch,more so as they make an absolutely beautiful Beetroot Risotto.My sister who hosted the lunch was keen that the menu be planned up ahead so as to avoid any confusion, as we were a large group.Grilled Fish in almond butter and Capers,Beef Tenderloin,Roasted chicken with pink peppercorns and Beet Risotto were our choice of mains.I was ever so happy see the Risotto feature on the menu and settled for just that.
So well, let’s say I’ve had Risotto making on my mind since the lunch and have been reading some great blog posts and recipes too.I had promised the dear son that I would make some for his lunch this afternoon.Now I do make a fairly decent one with Mushrooms and quite happy the way it turns out.I was just looking at a variation,so decided on a twist on the classic recipe by using some Beets.
I must say I was quite happy with the outcome.A humble attempt to replicate the one I normally indulge in at Cafe Zoe,none the less a delicious one.I’ve chosen to boil the beets and just puree them,all though you may even roast them and roughly grate them if you wish.I somehow felt that the route to a good Risotto was cumbersome and trying.How wrong have I been!The key really is just a little patience.It’s very important to toast the rice in the butter when you start off so that each grain gets warmed up and only then one could go ahead with glazing it with some wine.I’ve actually used some red wine in this recipe as I thought it would go well with the beets.
This is really a simple yet impressive meal and the beetroots lend a gorgeous colour and a hint of sweetness to the Risotto.The Parmesan shaving and drizzle add a hint of style making it quite eye-catching and an elegant presentation.This recipe is for keeps and I can’t wait to try it out again.
Ingredients:
- 320 grams Gallo Arborio rice
- 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 medium Onion chopped
- 2-3 pods garlic (minced)
- 2 small beetroot (boiled and pureed)
- 40 grams butter
- 1 glass of red wine
- Freshly grated Parmesan shavings
- 2 Tablespoons Avocado Oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
- In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the onions till translucent.
- Then add in the minced garlic and sauté further.
- Add the rice and let sauté till rice is transparent.
- Add in the wine and stir till it evaporates.
- Now keep adding spoonfuls of the stock and let it simmer on a slow flame.
- Do keep adding more stock as the stock is absorbed by the rice.
- When you have used about 2/3 rd the amount of stock,you may start adding the beetroot puree a little at a time.
- Continue adding the stock and bits of puree till the rice is cooked al dente and is creamy in texture( approx. 20-25 minutes).Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the parmesan shaving and season with some salt if necessary.
- Drizzle with Avocado Oil.
- Garnish with Parmesan Shavings.
- Serve hot.
Cookingwithshy 
Such a lovely colour! 💖
Thnaks…yes’s the beets are magical in this Risotto:))
Very appetising, with that vibrant colour!! Love it.
Thanks…yes Sumith the beets do it a really vibrant colour…
Thanks Sumith…yes the beets give it that gorgeous colour:))
Looks delicious! I love making risotto, and have some beets in the garden, so I will have to try this!
Yes you must…the Beets lend a lovely colour,texture and a mild sweetness to the Risotto…
I love beets, one of my favorite and in a risotto it sounds amazing 🙂
You must try this..the Beets add a brilliant colour and flavour to this Risotto..I love Beets too
Lovely colour and a healthy dish. can I skip the wine here?
Thanks so much..the wine in the Risotto is for flavour and glazing the rice…the wine ofcouurse evaporates…So in that sense Yes you could omit the wine if you like…
I wanted to make it for my son. Thank you shy.
Do let me know how it turns out…thanks
Lovely vibrant recipe…one I still haven’t got around making 🙂
Do try it out Nandini…and yes the beets do lend a vibrant colour to the Risotto
Beautiful presentation and I am sure it tastes delicious too 🙂
Yes thank you.it did turn out great and we all enjoyed it:))
Love the color
Yes it’s a gorgeous colour all thanks to the Beets:))
Looks yummy – what a great color!
Lovely beets give it this magical vibrant colour:))
Hello shy, I want to nominate you for Blogger Recognition Award:)) hopefully you will accept it. Its a form of online award given by one blogger to another. Here is the link. https://keralas.live/2016/06/27/blogger-recognition-award/ You may use image of your choice. Thank you. I visited your site several times; to nominate you, but I wasn’t sure if you will accept it. Thanking you. Sumith.
Oh thanks very much Sumith…yes of course I accept…I’m humbled that you choose me…I will certainly follow the link and post up on my blog with a mention of your blog ofcrures…
Oh my gosh, that’s a work of art! Just perfect and I don’t think the restaurant could do any better.
Thanks so much Julie for the lovely compliment…yes this Risotto did come out quite well:))
So beautiful, you did a marvelous job replicating this recipe. It looks and sounds just amazing! I’d never have thought of beetroot risotto, but now you’ve given me another way to use one of my favorite veggies :). Thank you.
Thanks so much for your lovely comment..yes the beets add a wonderful colour and mild sweetness to this Risotto…I do hope you will try this out:))
What a lovely colour and so nice to see beets used in such an inventive way!
Thanks so much…yes the beets work great in this Risotto..
I wouldn’t call that humble, your risotto is beautiful and beautifully presented.
Thanks very much Karen:))
Beautiful presentation. I would have never thought to add beets to risotto.
Thank Ellie…yes I too usually make a mushroom Risotto..had eaten this at a cafe here and thought of making this up…great to connect with you via our common love for food:))
Indeed, it looks like it is from a restaurant. Perhaps even tastier.
Thanks so much:))
This looks delightful. It’s beautiful and sounds very tasty.
Yes it does taste quite amazing Sheryl…Thanks:))
This is a beauty! I make things with beet now and then but haven’t used it in risotto yet! A great recipe to follow.
Thanks so much Balvinder…yes beets have a variety of uses and its out quite great in this Risotto too…do try it…you will love it…thanks for stopping by!!
So so pretty! It almost loos like dessert! thanks.
Thanks very much…yes the beets do add a mild sweetness to the Risotto:))
It’s beautiful Gaby.
Around the same time you made this dish, I made a beetroot pasta for the first time. It was also the first time I ever bought or cooked beets. 🙂
I’m making risotto soon so I can have leftovers to make arancini with. It’s a small world.
The beet pasta sounds great…will wait for your blog post then…Yes ofcourse Arancini with left over risotto would be perfect!!
You can see the beet pasta here.
https://aboleyn01.wordpress.com/2016/07/02/re-imagining-basic-recipes/
A more recent post in which I made egg yolk ravioli and regular cheese ravioli with the beet pasta. Sorry, forgot to include it above.
https://aboleyn01.wordpress.com/2016/07/15/hot-and-cooking-boring-stuff/
Lovely !
Thanks so much:))
Sounds very tasty!
Thank you:))