Cointreau-flavored risotto with artichokes

Artichoke-and-almond risotto recipe

Preparation

• - Clean and quarter artichokes.
  Plunge them in a bowl full of cold water in which you've sprinkled half a lemon.
• - Clean and chop leek.
• - Squeeze clementines and put apart their juice.
• - Pour olive oil in a large pan, not too deep.
• - Transfer leek and bay leaf in the pan.
• - Prepare vegetable stock and keep it boiling.

Cooking

• - Let leek fry slightly on very low heat for a couple of minutes, stirring now and then.
• - Meanwhile slice artichoke quarters very finely.
• - Add artichokes too and stir.
• - Let al ingredients flavor for a couple of minutes, stirring frequently.
• - Add rice too, stirring.
  Let rice fry slightly.
• - Pour in Cointreau liquer and stir.
• - Then add clementine juice too.
• - Wait until cooking juice is well reduced.
• - At this point pour in boiling stock, a ladle at a time.
  Stir now and then.
• - Follow the cooking time for rice on the package.
  At the end of the time your risotto should be creamy at the right.

Just before serving

• - Turn off the stove.
• - Add aromatic herbs too and stir accurately.
• - Wait for some minutes before serving.

Tips

Tips

• - You can use purple or spiny artichokes if well firm and fresh.
• - If you don't find clementines, replace them with a couple of oranges.
• - If you don't find Cointreau liqueur, you can replace it with arancino (orange-flavored liqueur). Link to arancino recipe below!
• - If you want, you can add some creamy cheese just before serving. I prefer the real and authentic taste of my risotto without adding anything else.

Menu planning

• - This artichoke risotto serves 4 people if combined with other courses in a full menu. On the contrary it's enough for 2 to 3 people.
• - This risotto of mine is, however, a delicate dish that has to be combined with other courses with caution in order to appreciate it fully. So here is my menu idea, Italian-style! If interested in its recipes, you'll be able to find all links in the next paragraph.
  Starter: Tuscan crostini accompanied by culatello or raw ham if you don't find culatello.
  First dish: this artichoke risotto
  Second dish: I generally choose a rabbit recipe. I prefer stuffed boned rabbit accompanied by baked potatoes or green salad.
  Dessert: I think Piedmontese ricotta cake can close this menu in a delicious way. You could choose ricotta-and-candied-fruit tart too, if you prefer.

Useful links for this recipe

• - Here are all the links to mentioned recipes.
  Let's begin with the starter and Tuscan crostini. You can also take a look at other croutons in the same directory.
  As second course I have mentioned stuffed boned rabbit, a real goodness that everybody will like, children included!
  Finally, the cake! Ricotta cake is a Piedmontese recipe full of flavors and delicate. Ricotta-and-candied-fruit tart is the second sweet. It is a classical recipe that is made throughout Italy.
• - As promised, here it is the link for orange-flavored liqueur well known in Italy as arancino.

Healthy eating

• - I'm going now to make a few comments on my artichoke risotto if you decide to prepare it for your family.
  A first, superficial reading might suggest a non-calorie dish. But this depends on the amount of rice. Only 50 grams per head. If you decide to increase this dose the matter is really different. So the choice is yours. You could settle for this small portion and then add something else (another seasonal vegetable dish or 50g ham or 50g cottage cheese or a piece of seasoned cheese - be careful because 50g seasoned cheese have from 150 up to 200 calories) or increase the dose of rice and other ingredients for a one-plate meal.
  In any case, you should eat no bread for the presence of rice.

Loretta

What's the right wine ?

It's very difficult to pair a wine with artichokes and Cointreau. My husband and I prefer a good Italian Prosecco. Bubbles are perfect according to us.