Blue Peter Brownies

Instructions

1. In a large frying pan add oil, onions, leeks and garlic. Gently sauté over medium-high heat until the leeks start to caramelise and turn golden in colour.
2. Add chicken and mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes while stirring then add rice and cook for a further 2 minutes while stirring constantly until rice grains become glossy and toasted. The rice might stick a little to the bottom of the pan and that's fine, just use a wooden spoon to unstick them as much as possible.
3. Turn the heat down to low-medium so that when liquid is added it is still gently bubbling. Add the herbs and wine, stir to mix together and let simmer until it almost fully absorbed - approximately 5 minutes. Then add 1 cup of chicken stock, stir and let simmer until almost absorbed... then repeat with remaining stock until the rice almost absorbs all liquid. You can constantly stir through this process if you prefer but I tend to take a shortcut and not do this, only when liquid is added.
4. Turn off the heat. Add the cream, Parmesan cheese and baby spinach, mix together and let sit for about 2-5 minutes until the spinach leaves wilt.
5. Season if required with salt before serving. I often find this isn't required if you're using a good liquid stock.

Recipe Notes

• The ratio to remember is 1 cup of rice combined with 3 (or slightly more) cups of stock - this makes 4 servings of risotto.
• You can substitute the fresh parsley and oregano for dried to give the same flavour. You might need a little less than what the recipe has above so just add to taste.
• Another substitute is with your stock. I use chicken stock but have made it with vegetable stock and this is just as delicious, it not more. Never ever use water instead of stock - the result will be disastrous!
• I have also substituted the chicken for about 350g bacon and this was also delicious.
• I often thought that with risottos you need to stir constantly for the whole duration it takes to cook it. That's not true. As long as the heat is evenly distributed in your large flat base frying pan, you don't necessarily need to stir constantly. I stir every time I added in liquid and maybe one or two times after that. It's not as high maintenance of a meal as I had originally thought and the rice turns out perfect!
• You can remove any of the vegetables in this dish or substitute it for something else depending on your tastes.
• Traditionally butter is used at the end instead of cream but I find cream gives a less heavier outcome to the risotto. If you want to use butter, add about 40g of really cold butter and beat it into the risotto with a wooden spoon until you reach the right texture - often an intense process that will leave your arm hurting.

3 tablespoons olive oil 2 leeks chopped into 5mm rounds 1 onion diced 5 cloves garlic crushed 500 g chicken fillets finely diced (preferably skinless thigh) 150 g mushrooms diced 1 1/3 cups arborio rice 1 cup white wine 1 litre chicken stock 1/4 cup cream 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped 1 tablespoon fresh oregano chopped 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated 120 g baby spinach Salt to taste