Usually during the Tour De France my friend Kim and I watch ‘together’. She will be in the lounge of her home in Australia and I will be in the lounge of my home in Gordons Bay. We sit with our laptops, chatting on IM and we discuss where they are, how the riders are doing and generally what has happened during our day. It is so amazing that she can be 6 hours time wise away and about 20 hours of travelling away from me. As soon as she hits the enter button on her laptop, I can read what is on her mind. So, during the tour I have been coming home to chat to her, but she has not been online. It is usually about 17h00 here when I get home, and I know that means it is bed time for her, but I miss her. In order to keep myself company, I will have to cook! A risotto is a perfect meal as it takes time to prepare everything, and there is still 35km to go of today’s tour.

CALAMARI RISOTTO

ingredients:

1 tablespoon lemon infused olive oil

1 shallot, finely chopped

2 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

200g Arborio rice

½ cup white wine

500mls vegetable stock, on simmer

2 pinches flaked salt

½ cup frozen peas

salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning

½ teaspoon mixed herbs

30g butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 chilli, halved

250g calamari

small handful fresh rocket, roughly chopped

method:

heat the lemon infused olive oil in a large frying pan

sauté the shallot and garlic, without colouring

add the celery and cook until soft

add the rice and stir until it starts toasting

add the wine and allow the alcohol to burn off, and the rice to absorb the wine

add one ladle of stock and stir until it is absorbed

add a pinch of flaked salt and another ladle of stock

once again stir while it is being absorbed

add another pinch of flaked salt and continue to add a ladle of stock at a time

you don’t need to stir all the time, but make sure you stir often and don’t add another ladle until the stock has been completely absorbed

when you have one ladle of stock left, add the peas and adjust the seasoning and add the herbs

now add the last ladle and check for doneness

at the same time as adding the last ladle of stock, heat the olive oil and 15g butter in a separate pan

add the chilli and the rest of the garlic

flash fry the calamari on a high heat until done

take the risotto of the heat and add 15g butter and mix in thoroughly

remove the chilli from the calamari

top with the calamari, the pan juices and garnish with the rocket

Printable Version

I submitted this recipe for Presto Pasta Nights, last week to  Debbi Does Dinner but my email seems to have got lost in the ethernet, so I am sending it off to Anu of Truth Personified for this week.

Tandy

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