Recipe provided by Austin Personal Chef: Carlos CruscoIngredients
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup water
3 bacon slices – cut into 1/2 inch lardons
2 large garlic cloves – finely sliced
2/3 cup Arborio rice
3/4 cup frozen peas
4 tbsps. grated Pecorino Romano
2 tbsps. unsalted butter
1 lemon – zest only
20 cherry tomatoes
Basil – Chiffonade cut – for garnish
Pine nuts – lightly toasted
Coarse Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper
Directions
In a medium pot, bring the chicken broth and water to a simmer in a small saucepan. Set aside.
Cook bacon in a large saute pan over medium heat, stirring, until crispy. Transfer bacon lardons with a slotted spoon to a paper towel to drain. Set aside.
Add garlic to bacon fat in pan and cook, stirring occasionally, about 1 minute. Add rice, stirring to coat. Season with salt/pepper.
Add a ladle of broth mixture and simmer, stirring constantly, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding hot broth (a ladle or two at a time) stirring frequently and letting each addition be absorbed before adding the next. Cook until rice is just tender and creamy-looking but still al dente, 10-12 minutes. (Reserve leftover broth mixture.)
Add peas and cook, stirring occasionally, to warm through. Then stir in cheese, butter and zest. Thin risotto with some of reserved broth mixture if desired. Taste and and season with salt and pepper if needed.
In a separate small saute pan with olive oil on high heat, saute cherry tomatoes for 1-2 minutes. Season with salt/pepper and set aside.
To serve, spoon onto a large plate or wide/shallow bowl. Top with bacon and cherry tomatoes. Garnish with Pine nuts, Basil and Pecorino cheese. Serve with warm, crispy French Bread. Enjoy!
