Vegan risotto with gremolata

Step 1

Wash asparagus and snap the wooden ends off (or cut them off with a knife). Coat asparagus in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Step 2

Put a small pot of water to boil. Cook broad beans in the boiling water for about 5 minutes - until they are soft in the centre. While the beans are cooking, prepare a bowl of cold water and a few ice cubes. As soon as the beans are cooked, drain them and plunge them into the icy water - this will stop the discolouration process. Shell them and set aside.

Step 3

Chop almonds and mint leaves very finely. Mix them both in with lemon zest, nutritional yeast (if using), salt, pepper and lemon juice. Set aside.

Step 4

Heat up 2 tbsp of oil in a heavy bottom pan. Fry the onion until translucent, stirring frequently. Add in the garlic and leek and fry for another minute or two.

Step 5

Add risotto rice and coat it in the aromatics, stirring often to make sure it doesn't burn. Keep on frying the rice until it turns slightly translucent - this should take around 1-2 minutes.

Step 6

Pour all the wine in at once. Cook the rice in the wine for a few minutes until the rice has absorbed all of it. Don't forget to stir frequently.

Step 7

Add a generous pinch of salt. Start adding hot stock, little by little. Make sure you only add the bare minimum of stock at one time - i.e. the rice isn't supposed to swim in the stock, the stock should simply make sure the rice doesn't dry out. Stir the risotto regularly, but refrain from stirring all the time as it will lower the temperature and aerate the rice.

Step 8

While topping up the risotto, heat up a griddle pan (or a regular pan). Griddle previously prepped asparagus on a hot griddle pan until nicely charred, turning a few times. Chop into 2-3 cm pieces and set aside.

Step 9

Continue adding the stock until you've used it all up. This usually takes between 15 and 20 minutes. Cooked rice should still retain a bit of a bite. Season your risotto and add in the cooked vegetables. Put the lid on the pan and let it stand for 1 minute. Serve with the gremolata sprinkled on top.