Freitag, 30. Oktober 2015

Fig and Hazelnut Biscotti

And here goes the weekend baking. I love nothing more than a good baking project for the weekend, because usually it makes everybody happy. 
My god mother's birthday was last week and because it was a big one I wanted to surprise her by sending her a package. I have learned from my experience with boyfriends and best friends in military service that biscotti or cantuccini as they're called in Italy work great for sending, because they keep well for a long time and won't break easily. Perfect to send them on a long trip. 


This recipe is from Cynthia Barcomi's latest book "Cookies". She introduces four new recipes for cantuccini all of which are delicious and super easy. 

Here's the recipe: 
100g (3.5 oz) hazelnuts
270g (2 3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon; 9.5 oz) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
150g (5.3 oz) dried figs
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, for the figs
100g (a little more than 3/4 stick; 3.5 oz) unsalted butter
40g (2 slightly heaping tablespoons) granulated sugar
40g (2 slightly heaping tablespoons) dark brown sugar
zest of 1 organic orange, grated
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Line a baking tray with baking paper. Roast the hazelnuts for 6 minutes in the oven, then let them cool. Chop them roughly. 

2) Mix the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Sprinkle the figs with the extra tablespoon of flour, then chop them roughly. Mix with the nuts.

3) Grate the zest from the orange. In a kitchen machine or a hand held blender, whisk the butter and both sugars along with the orange zest for 6 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla extract and mix everything. 

4) Mix with the flour-mixture, then add the figs and nuts until everything is just coming together. The dough is a little sticky, but that is just right.

5) Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a loaf of 22cm (9 inches) length. 

6) Bake for 22-25 minutes until golden. Let cool slightly on the baking tray, then take a large serrated knife and cut the loafs into 1cm thick slices. Place cut-side up on the baking tray. Mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the biscotti with the cinnamon sugar.

7) Reduce the oven temperature to 170° (340°F). Bake the biscotti for 8 minutes, then take the tray out of the oven, turn the biscotti and sprinkle the other side with cinnamon sugar as well. Bake for another 8 minutes. 

8) Let the biscotti cool on the baking tray for 10 minutes. 
© Cynthia Barcomi "Cookies", p. 134.

Yield: about 24 pieces
Active preparation time: 25 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Here's how mine turned out:




I love how you can stack them in a glass and keep them on the countertop - they'll be gone like the wind. 

These cantuccini come with a wide range of flavors. There's zesty orange flavor, slightly tangy, the hazelnuts add warmth and earthiness, the figs crackle beautifully in your mouth when you take a bite and the cinnamon sugar sprinkle adds warmth and brings the different flavors together.

Don't be taken aback by the number of steps. The steps in itself are simple and easy and you will be rewarded with beautiful homemade biscotti in no time.

Have fun trying and have a great weekend!

Montag, 26. Oktober 2015

Oven-baked risotto with basil, lemon and parmesan

It's monday and this is the first meat-free monday post I've written in a while. Fall is in a full swing here in Switzerland and the sun has worked up the force to beat the fog, so I decided to make something easy and fast that didn't need a lot of work and soak up the nice weather as much as possible. I still wanted some comfort food though, which is why I turned to a risotto recipe from Donna Hay. Her oven-baked risottos are fool-proof and absolutely delicious. It's like magic - throw all ingredients into a oven-proof tin, give them a quick stir and let your oven cook the rice for 30 minutes until it's perfectly creamy and cooked. And you're free to do whatever you like in the meantime. 

This recipe is from Donna Hay's latest book "the new easy" which features a ton of new, fast recipes that need little prep, but nevertheless offer a ton of flavor. The recipe happens to be vegetarian and can be tweaked into being vegan, so it's a perfect meat-free alternative.

Here's the recipe:
30g (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
1 onion
2 tablespoon lemon thyme
2 cloves of garlic (optional, as always)
250g (8.8 oz; 1 1/4 cups) arborio rice (or any risotto rice you have on hand)
1l (32 fl.oz; 4 cups) chicken or vegetable stock 
1 tablespoon lemon zest (from 1 medium organic lemon)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
80g (2.8 oz; 1 cup) grated parmesan (or a vegan cheese substitute)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 handfuls fresh basil (1 package of 20g)

1) Preheat the oven to 200°C (395°F). Dice the onion finely. Press the garlic cloves. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and cook the onion and thyme for 5 minutes until the onions has softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.

2) Add the onion-garlic mixture to your oven-proof baking dish. Add the rice and stock, give it a stir and cover with aluminium foil. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.

3) If you didn't buy grated parmesan, grate the parmesan while the risotto is baking. Grate the lemon zest as well. Cut the basil leaves into thin strips.

4) When the risotto has cooked, stir through the parmesan, lemon juice and lemon zest and basil and season with salt and pepper. 
© Donna Hay "the new easy", p. 133.

Yield: 4 portions 
Active preparation time: 10 minutes
Total preparation time: 40 minutes

Here's how mine turned out:


I love how quick and easy you can assemble this risotto. I also adore the flavors. If you're looking for a risotto that's suitable for fall, try Donna's version with sweet potato and bacon. 
This risotto has just the right amount of freshness from the lemon while the basil and parmesan round the flavor and take you straight to a sun-filled day in Italy - in your mind at least. You can perfectly eat this on its own or serve it along some saltimbocca (if you're not on meat-free monday). 

Have fun trying and have a lovely, sunny, golden fall week!

Freitag, 23. Oktober 2015

My favorite pancakes

I know what you want to say. There's soo many pancake recipes out there, every family has its own favorite recipe or recipes they've been making for a long long time. I have had my own fair share of searching for the perfect recipe. I finally found my favorite recipe about two years ago, by accident. I had tried countless recipes by that time but had never been completely satisfied. Either the pancakes weren't fluffy enough or they wouldn't hold their shape well, but the dough would be so runny, you'd end up with a thin, large pancake and I like smaller pancakes that hold their shape well and end up fluffy and perfect.

The recipe is from Cynthia Barcomi's "Backbuch", her first book. I didn't buy the book for its pancake recipe - which I have done in the past, buying a book for a certain recipe. I have a slight cookbook addiction, I admit. But even though I discovered this recipe by accident, I have been making it ever since and never even tried a different pancake recipe. 

Here's the recipe:

180g (1 cup + 1 heaping tablespoon) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
30g (2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
200ml (3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon) milk
30g (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs
unsalted butter, for baking

1) Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a bowl and mix. 

2) Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Whisk the milk and eggs in. 

3) Combine the wet with the dry ingredients and beat until the dough is smooth.

4) Preheat a large pan over medium-high heat and grease with a little butter. Add 1/8 cup of dough to the pan. Bake up to two pancakes at the same time. You know it's time to flip the pancakes when they are starting to form bubbles on the top. 

Yield: about 12 pancakes
Serves: 2 as a main breakfast, 4 as a "starter" breakfast
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 15 minutes

Here's how mine look:

I apologize for the quality of the picture.  It was such a grey day outside, I had to switch on a lamp to get enough light. 

I served the pancakes with maple syrup and a quick plum compote (that's 6 plums, cut into pieces, 125ml (1/2 cup water), 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, seeds from one vanilla pod and 1 cinnamon stick, brought to a boil and cooked for 6 minutes until the plums start breaking down). In summer, we usually go for a mix of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. But feel free to use whatever you love. You could easily sprinkle chocolate chips on the unbaked side before flipping for chocolate pancakes, for example. Let your creativity loose!

And here's the pancakes with a quick blueberry sauce (1 package frozen blueberries brought to a light boil and 1 tablespoon maple syrup added for a hint of sweetness).


Have fun trying and have a great start to the weekend spoiling your loved ones!

Dienstag, 20. Oktober 2015

Pita Bread

How was your weekend? Did you dig in to some baking? I did, if not cake for once, but bread. One of my boyfriend's most vivid memories is from a holiday he spent in Israel eating pita bread as a side for dinner almost every day. When he returned, he was raving about it so much, I decided to make it for him. Of course, I don't go out to buy some at the supermarket which you could obviously, but decided to try my hand at home-made pita bread. I was baffled by how easy it is and how amazing and satisfying the end result was. It is pretty fast as well. The best thing? You need 4 ingredients most of you will already have at home.

I got the recipe from Food52. They have a few recipes for pita bread on their site but I was drawn to the picture accompanying the recipe for a whole wheat pita. I used all all-purpose flour, because my boyfriend was skeptical as to how a whole wheat pita would taste, so I obeyed, but trust me, I won't stop until I've planted some whole wheat pita bread on him. 
Here's the link to the recipe: http://food52.com/recipes/20445-whole-wheat-pita-bread

And here's my adaptation:

1 tablespoon dry yeast (1 sachet of 7g)
375 ml (1.5 cups) warm water (lukewarm)
1 teaspoon salt
525g (3.5 cups) all-purpose flour

1) Dissolve the yeast in the water and let it sit for 5 minutes until the yeast starts bubbling up to see it's active. 

2) Add the salt and the flour. Knead with a kitchen machine or electric mixer until a forms. Continue kneading for about 8 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add a little more flour if it is too sticky.

3) Turn the dough onto a lightly flour-dusted surface. Divide it into 8 equal portions. Roll into balls, then flatten them to 1 cm high disks. Place the breads on a baking tray lined with baking paper and set aside to rise for 30-40 minutes until slightly puffed.

4) Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F). Place the tray in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until light golden.

Yield: 8 pitas
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Now get creative! What we like to do is slice a little piece off the pita and cut a pouch on the inside. Then fill with whatever you like. I've hosted a pita evening where we served the pitas along small falafel balls, pan-fried chicken breast and pan-fried ground beef. For vegetables we served tomatoes, salad and corn. And as a sauce classic cocktail sauce along with sour cream that we tweaked with a little paprika powder, salt and pepper. This makes a great main course, but feel free to use the pitas on their own as a side dish for your next barbecue.


Here's how it looks:


I am sorry the lighting it a little bad. I was at my boyfriend's home but still wanted to take pictures of this to introduce you to. The first time we made these everything was gone so fast I didn't succeed taking a picture. But let me assure you, this is absolutely delicious and the pitas look beautiful all round and puffed. 

Have fun trying!

Freitag, 16. Oktober 2015

Pumpkin Maple Pies

I'll get back to what I promised last saturday. My sister's second birthday cake. Or cakes rather. I've been itching to try my hand with this recipe for a long time, but it is a little work (pie dough, filling) and I simply couldn't find the time or just wanted to relax on the weekends. But my indecisiveness with regard to what my sister could or would want for her birthday cake made it impossible to decide on one cake, so I ended up baking two. 

I know I've been introducing you to a ton of Donna Hay recipes and this is no exception. I will try to get back to other recipes as well, but this was too appealing to let it wait in the drawer for another year. 

Here's the link to the recipe: https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/recipe-entertaining/pumpkin-and-maple-pies-with-walnut-sugar

Here's how I worked:

1kg butternut pumpkin
250ml (1 cup) maple syrup
4 eggs
250ml (1 cup) single cream
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
450g (3 cups) all-purpose flour
250g (2 sticks) unsalted butter
160g (1 cup) icing sugar
6 egg yolks, whites reserved
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons iced water
55g (1/2 cup) walnuts
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1) Start by deseeding and peeling the pumpkin. I find this works easiest by cutting the pumpkin quarters in thin slices and using a peeler to remove the skin. Cut the pumpkin into one-inch (2.5cm) cubes.

2) Transfer the pumpkin pieces to a saucepan large enough to fit all pieces, cover with water and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, cook for about 15 minutes on medium heat until the pumpkin is soft. Drain and set aside.

3) Place the flour, butter and icing sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer or food processor. Process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. While the motor is running, add the egg yolks and vanilla. Add the water, if the dough is too dry, until the dough just comes together. 

4) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently bring together. At this point, you can either flatten the dough into a disk or roll it, line the pie tins with it and freeze after. I followed the second. Roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper until 3mm thick. Cut rounds from the pastry (I have smaller pie tins, so I used 12cm rounds) and line your pie tins, after you've lightly greased them. 

5) Trim the edges and prick the base with a fork. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to two hours. 

6) Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). If you have baking weights, linke the pastry cases with non-stick baking paper, fill with the weights and blind bake for 10 minutes or until light golden. If not, don't worry. The pastry will puff a little more while baking, but don't bother buying weights. 

7) While the pastry cases are baking, prepare the pumpkin filling. Purée the pumpkin along with the cream, maple syrup, eggs and nutmeg until smooth. 

8) Brush the inside of the pastry shells with egg white. Place the pie tins on a baking tray, fill with the pumpkin mixture and bake for 30 minutes or until just set.

9) While the pies are baking, make the walnut sugar. Place the walnuts, sugar and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped. 

10) Top the pies with the walnut sugar to serve

Yield: 8 according to Donna; I ended up with 15.
Active preparation time: about 45 minutes 
Total preparation time: 2 hours

Here's how mine look(ed):




I really love the fall colors of this beautiful dessert or pastry. 
The recipe is easy enough to follow, although I always tweak recipes for pastry dough, because I find it extremely hard to work with if you're cooling it first. Once you take it out of the fridge, you have to wait again for it to soften, but not let it get too soft or it'll crumble and you can't work with it. I find the dough turns out just as good if you're rolling and placing it in the baking tin before cooling. 

These pumpkin pies combine the distinct taste of pumpkin with the soft sweetness from the maple syrup. I love that these don't turn out overly sweet. They are sweet, but not with a sticky sweetness. The walnut sugar also adds a nice, slightly crunchy touch. 

These will keep in the fridge for a couple of days. 

Have fun trying and have a lovely weekend!

Dienstag, 13. Oktober 2015

Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpea Soup

I'm a little late for meat free monday, but this recipe serves as your meat free any day recipe just as well.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed some baking or cooking - or both! I definitely enjoyed my piece(s) of cake. The apple pie I already told you about and - as I couldn't decide on one cake - I devoured pieces of something else. I promise I will tell you about that second cake soon enough. But today's post is about Donna Hay's new latest book "The new easy". I bought it a while ago, but only got around to try some of the recipes this week. The soup I would like to introduce you to today is a great fall or winter soup. It is creamy, rich, comforting, warming, using fall produce and healthy at the same time! 
As always, omit the garlic if you want to or use less. This soup is easily made vegan by using vegetable stock and omitting the yoghurt. 

Here's the recipe:

1kg (35 oz) (1 large head) cauliflower 
1 400g (14 oz) can chickpeas
4 garlic cloves
4 sprigs of thyme
1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 1 medium organic lemon)
1 teaspoon cumin powder
60ml (1/4 cup) olive oil
sea salt 
black pepper
1 potato
1.5l (6 cups) chicken or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon sumach
natural yoghurt, to serve

1) Preheat your oven to 200°C (395°F). Cut the cauliflower into florets. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Grate the zest from the lemon. Peel the garlic cloves.

2) Place the cauliflower florets, chickpeas, lemon zest, thyme and garlic cloves on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Season with salt, pepper and cumin, drizzle with the oil and toss to combine. Place the tray in the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

3) In the meantime, cut the potato into small cubes, place in a large saucepan with the stock and bring to the boil. Cook for 8 minutes, until the potato is soft. 

4) Add 2/3 to all of the cauliflower mix and cook for 1-2 minutes. Blend with a handheld blender until smooth. 

5) Serve the soup in bowls, add the cauliflower-chickpea-mix and a dollop of yoghurt and sprinkle with sumach. 

Yield: 2.5 litres soup (serves roughly 8)
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total prepration time: 50 minutes

Here's how mine looks:


I wanted a smooth soup for a change so I blended all of the cauliflower mix with the broth. I also ran out of potatoes, so I omitted them. And, of course, the garlic. My soup turned out rather thick, but feel free to add water until you reach your desired thickness.

What I love is the depth of flavor the roasting lends the cauliflower. This soup has a rich and earthy flavor that is balanced by a very light brightness from the lemon zest. It might not look so pretty because the color is less attention-catching than the bright red of a tomato. 
But this soup is the perfect warming treat on a grey and rainy, cold fall day. The chickpeas add protein to help keep you full and make the soup creamy without any added cream.

What I love is that the recipe works and is little work. A small trick like roasting the produce before blending it into soup adds a ton of flavor. 

Have fun trying and keep warm on these chilly fall days!

Samstag, 10. Oktober 2015

Cider Caramel Apple Pie

It's October 10th which is my sister's birthday, so Happy Birthday Amelie! I asked her if she wanted cake and her answer was yes, but not necessarily our traditional birthday cake which is a marble cake covered in chocolate. As autumn is in full swing I decided to go with the season. I have a go-to apple pie recipe, but I was itching to try a different recipe I had come across some time in summer browsing the Food52 website. 
It's one of my favorite sites for their beautiful pictures and creative recipes. I am always looking for new quinoa salads and new combinations for my lunches and this site has been a great help a dozen times.

Here's the link to the recipe: http://food52.com/recipes/31911-cider-caramel-apple-pie

The recipe asks you to use your own favorite crust recipe, so I decided to play it safe and take the crust from my go-to apple pie which is from Cynthia Barcomi's first book "Backbuch". 

Here's the full recipe for the pie:

For the dough:
420g (3 cups minus 1 tablespoon) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
240g (2 sticks) unsalted butter
90g palm butter
160ml (1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons) cold water

For the filling:
1l (1 quart, 4 cups) apple cider
80g (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 large apples (the recipe called for Honeycrisp, I used Elster, Granny Smith would work)
175g (1 cup) brown sugar
50g (1/3 cup) all-purpose flour
pinch of cinnamon

1 egg, to brush
brown sugar for sprinkling if desired

1) Start by placing the apple cider into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let it reduce until it has reached a caramel-like consistency. This will take 1-2 hours, depending on the size of your pan. It took a little over an hour for me. Be patient - the cider will almost be gone before you can add the butter and vanilla.  

Cut the butter for the dough in small pieces. I didn't use palm butter, but substituted regular butter which works just fine. Place the butter in the freezer for about 30 minutes.

2) While the butter is freezing, mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Then add the butter  and mix with an electric mixer until the dough gets crumbly. 

3) Add 1/2 cup of the water and mix again until the dough comes together. If it's a little dry, add one tablespoon at a time, if necessary. 

4) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to about 3mm thick. Divide the dough in half. Half of the dough will be to cover the pie. Grease a 26cm (10 inch) pie dish or springform tin and place the dough in it. The return to the fridge for chilling, at least 30 minutes. I like to roll the dough before chilling because it's easier to work it at that point.

5) While the dough is chilling, make the filling. Cut the apples into quarts. You can either slice them now. I like cut the apples into 8 pieces and slice sidewise, not lengthwise, because I like smaller pieces in the pie. Measure the flour, sugar and cinnamon (I used half a teaspoon) and mix with the apples. 

6) When the cider has reduced, stir through the butter and vanilla extract. Add to the apples and mix thoroughly. 

7) Fill the apples into your crust. For the top crust, you can get creative. You can try a traditional lattice, you can simply roll the dough to a large round and top the whole pie with it as is shown in the recipe. I wanted to make this pie a little more special - hey, it's supposed to be a birthday cake! - and tried my hand at a braided lattice. Here's the link to the Food52-direction: http://food52.com/blog/13572-master-the-traditional-lattice-top-pie-then-try-7-fun-riffs. Brush the lattice or top crust with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar, if desired.

8) Preheat the oven to 225°C (437°F). When placing the pie in the oven, reduce the temperature to 210°C (410°F) and bake for 15 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 190°C (375°F), cover lightly with aluminium foil and bake for 50 more minutes. 

Yield: 12-16 slices
Active preparation time: about 45 minutes
Total preparation time: a little over 3 hours.

Here's how mine turned out:



I really like how this turned out. Braiding the dough is a little tricky, because the dough can't be too cold or it will be too hard to work with and if it's too warm, the braids will easily tear.

The cider brings a very distinct, slightly bitter note to the pie balancing the sweetness from the sugar. Not so much form the apples, as they're already tart. The dough is not sweet, which helps balance the whole pie as well. The apples are baking softly, but still keep a little bit of bite. 

I really love this pie and will most likely make it again a few more times in autumn in winter. It is a nice variation if you want something other than "regular" apple pie without adding a ton of work. And it is great fun to keep your eaters guessing the "secret" ingredient, cider. 

Have fun trying and have a great weekend!





Dienstag, 6. Oktober 2015

Cauliflower Risotto

So it's rainy in Switzerland and rather cold, but I will hold another soup recipe for one more week. But I'll love to share next week. Because I'm working full-time now, I am always looking for ways to cook things that will reheat well and still feel comforting, because fall is call about comfort food for me. 

This recipe is from the June/July 2014 winter issue of Donna Hay magazine. It's super easy and I love the way how the cauliflower blends with the risotto rice. The original recipes serves this risotto with crispy cooked chicken breasts and the risotto sprinkled with chopped toasted walnuts and crispy pan-fried sage. I took the risotto to work every day and started off topping it with chicken breast, but the other day threw some prawns in there for a change. Topping it off with whatever protein you like makes it super easy and versatile. Also, I used a lot less butter. And I left the garlic out. 

Here's the recipe:
500g (17.5 oz) cauliflower
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small onion
(2 cloves garlic)
1/3 cup (80ml) white wine
1 1/2 cups (300g) risotto rice
1.5 liters hot chicken / vegetable stock
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 x 200g (7 oz) chicken breast fillets, skin on if you like
sea salt and black cracked pepper
1/2 cup (50g) walnuts
1 cup sage leaves
(mascarpone, to serve)

1) Roughly chop the cauliflower. Place the florets in the bowl of a food processor and, with short pulses, process until the mixture is finely chopped. You might have to work in batches. If you don't have a food processor, you can take the whole head of cauliflower and grate it on a box grater.

2) Finely chop the onion. Heat the stock in a small saucepan. Melt the butter in a large deep-sided frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes until softened. 

3) Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes. Cook, stirring frequently, for 18 minutes while adding the stock, one cup at a time, allowing to absorb between each addition. 

4) Add the cauliflower and cook for a further 5-7 minutes.

5) Heat a small pan over high heat. Add the olive oil, walnuts and sage and cook for 2-3 minutes or until browned. 

6) Divide the risotto between plates and top with the mascarpone, if using it, and walnut sage butter. Season with a little salt and pepper.

Serves: 4 according to the recipe, 6 in my opinion for a meal and probably 8 as a side.
Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: about 40 minutes

Here's how it looks:


I loved how the cauliflower blends with rice. It is not very colorful as the only color in the picture comes from the prawns I added. But the taste is very nice. The cauliflower add a little bit of bite and a lot of its distinct, slightly sweet taste. You probably could omit any added salt, because the vegetable stock usually already has a lot of salt in it. Just make sure you taste along.

A risotto will always get you work - except you're trying Donna's recipes for oven-baked risotto. This is not one of them, but sometimes it's worth the effort and time. 

Have fun trying and enjoy this warming, seasonal treat!