Pesto & Roasted Tomato Risotto
This vegan & gluten free Pesto & Roasted Tomato Risotto is one of the tastiest dinners you’ll make. It’s amazingly creamy whilst being packed with flavour.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Vegan Butter or oil
- 1 Whole White Onion finely diced
- 2 Cloves Garlic crushed
- 400 Grams Risotto or Arborio Rice
- 200 ml Dry White Wine
- 2 L Veg Stock
- Vegan Cream (optional)
For The Pesto
- 1 Cup Fresh Basil
- 2 tbsp Pine Nuts you can also use cashews or walnuts
- 1 Clove Garlic
- 1.5 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 5 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Salt (to taste)
For The Roasted Tomatoes:
- 10-15 Cherry Tomatoes sliced in half
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190C
- Spread the cherry tomatoes on a baking tray and drizzle with the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper - place in the oven to roast for 20 minutes
- Put the vegetable stock in a saucepan over a low heat to keep warm
For The Pesto
- Add ALL of the pesto ingredients (above) to a food processor and pulse until it’s almost smooth (you want a bit of bite) - set aside
For The Rice
- In a large pan melt the vegan butter over a medium heat
- Add the onion and garlic and cook for around 4-5 minutes until softened (not browned)
- Add the risotto rice to the pan and stir so it’s coated with the butter
- Pour in the wine and stir until it has been absorbed
- Add a ladleful of the stock and stir into the rice until it’s absorbed. Keep doing this until the rice is cooked (approx 25 mins)
Bringing It All Together
- Once the rice is tender and cooked, stir in a little vegan cream (if using)
- Add 3 tablespoons of the pesto you made earlier
- Serve in bowls and top with roasted tomatoes and vegan parmesan
Notes
I like to use homemade vegetable stock when making risotto, but if you haven’t got any to hand then vegetable stock cubes work perfectly too! My favourite way to make stock is to save up my vegetable scraps from the week and toss them in a big pot with lots of water, garlic, onion and peppercorns and simmer for 1-2 hours, then drain. It adds the most incredible flavour to meals, especially this risotto! It’s also a great way to reduce your food waste.