Vanilla Risotto with Oven Roasted Pears

 

Risotto doesn't always have to be a savory dish.  It can just as easily be a sweet and delious type of  pudding.  Something like this Vanilla Risotto here today.  People can be a little put off and afraid of making risotto . . .fearing that it is a bit too complicate or time consuming, but it really isn't.



It does require constant attention however, but so long as you stay with it and do what the recipe says, you will always be rewarded at the end with something quite silky and delicious, with just a tiny bit of bite.



This risotto is not overly sweet . . . the only sweetening being a bit of honey . . . it's nicely flavoured with vanilla . . . and just a hint of ground cinnamon and ground cardamom.  Warm sweet spices that go so well with both vanilla and pears . . .

 

Oh yes . . . the pears.  Oven roasted until just tender and then peeled . . . the oven roasting bringing out their natural sweetness.   Tender and sweet, sitting in an ocean of that delicious vanilla risotto.  Impressive.  Simple.  Delicious.  What more could a person ask for?

*Vanilla Risotto with Oven Roasted Pears*

Serves 4

Printable Recipe 

A deliciously simple vanilla risotto, sweetened with honey and served with oven roasted fresh pears. 

1 tsp Vanilla paste

(Alternately use 1/2 a vanilla pod)

500 ml of full fat milk (a generous 2 cups)

100ml single cream (scant 1/2 cup)

1 1/2 TBS unsalted butter 

175g of arborio rice (scant 3/4 cup)

2 TBS Orange Liqueur (Grands Marnier or Cointreau)

4 TBS liquid honey

pinch ground cardamon

pinch ground cinnamon

4 firm medium sized pears 

(You may need a bit of additonal milk)

a drizzle of warm honey and a dusting of cinnamon to finish 

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Place the pears into a baking dish and roast until they are tender without being mushy.  This will take about 20 minutes. 

While the pears are roasting put the vanilla into a saucepan along with the milk and the cream.   Heat just to the boil.  Take off the heat immediately.   Set aside.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.  Once it begins to foam add the rice.   Cook, stirring to toast the rice for several minutes.  Add the Orange Liqueur.  Let the rice absorb it.  Begin to add the heated milk/cream mixture, a small ladle full at a time, allowing the rice to absorb most of the milk before adding another ladle full until most of the milk is absorbed and the rice is slightly al dente with a creamy sauce. (You may need additional milk)  This will take about 25 minutes.    Add the honey into it towards the end of the cooking time, along with a pinch each of cardamon and cinnamon.  Taste and adjust as necessary, adding additional honey if need be.


Peel your pears and place one into each of four dessert dishes.  Spoon the  risotto around the pears.  Drizzle with some warm honey and dust with a bit of cinnamon.  Serve immediately.

White Chocolate Glazed Jewel Tarts

 

I love the holidays.  I miss having Thanksgiving over here in the UK.  It seems to me like the perfect start to the holiday season . . . but alas . . . we don't even really seem to celebrate St George's Day which is kind of odd really, seeing as he is the Patron Saint of England.  Oh well as they say up North . . . "There's naught so queer as folk!"



Of course the things I love most about the holidays are having friends and family around and the special food that we get to eat.   We do go all out don't we?   I love it.   I am not opposed to taking a few short cuts if I can however.



I like dessert to be something light and not too filling.  After a heavy meal, a heavy dessert seems to be just too much.  That's why I created these delicious little tarts which although not large in size, are just enough to end a celebratory meal in the perfect way.



Little airy indulgences that aren't going to lay heavily on your stomach.   Sweet enough to let you know you have had a bit of a treat without going over the top.   Composed of butter and flaky puff pastry.  ( I always buy the ready roll all butter, which works wonderfully and is ready at the drop of a hat.)  You make a kind of bejeweled jam to top these airy little bites.  Made from chopped dried apricots, dried cranberries, cointreau liqueur and cinnamon, it goes perfectly with that crisp and buttery base.



Topped with flaked almonds and baked until crisp and then drizzled with melted white chocolate, these are the perfect ending to a special meal.  You can top with clotted cream or whipped cream if you like.  Oh so good.  



The filling does make a bit more than you can use in the tarts, but it's also handy for other things, so be sure to check it out below.  In the meantime . . . here you are.  Indulge yourself.

*White Chocolate Glazed Jewel Tarts*

Makes 10 to 12 (4-inch) tarts  

Printable Recipe  

Delightfully crisp little tarts with fruity flavours along with an underlying hint of spice and orange.   Topped with roasted almonds they bake up beautifully.  A final topping of white or dark chocolate drizzle makes these special. Perfect for bunch, holiday teas or a celebratory dessert table. 

For the filling:

250g of dried apricots, cut into small pieces

(1 cup firmly packed)

(I like to use Hungry Jack's Organic.  They have an almost toffee flavour)

75g of dried cranberries (1/2 cup)

3 TBS Cointreau liqueur

335ml of  boiling water (1 1/2 cups)

60ml of white wine (1/4 cup)

85g of white sugar (1/2 cup)

100g of soft light brown muscovado sugar (1/2 cup)

1 cinnamon stick 

2 sheets of all butter ready rolled pastry

milk for brushing

170g of flaked toasted almonds (1 cup)

3 TBS demerara sugar (Turbinado)

ground cinnamon to dust

4 ounces of white belgian chocolate to finish

(Alternately you can use dark chocolate, or a mix of both) 

Put the apricot pieces and cranberries into a medium sized bowl.  Pour the boiling water over top, along with the white wine and cointreau.  Cover and set aside to soak for at leat 30 minutes or up to an hour.  Transfer to a saucepan and add the cinnamon stick, and both sugars.  Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture is thick and has a jam like consistency.  Set aside to cool.  Remove the cinnamon stick once cold. 

Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7.  Line a baking tray with parchment paper.

Unroll the pastry and using a 4 inch round cutter, cut out five or six rounds from the pastry.   Place on the baking sheet.   Take a smaller (3 inch) cutter and make a light indentation in the centre of the circle.  You will have a half inch rim around the outside of each.  Brush this with some milk and then sprinkle with the turbinado sugar.  Dust with cinnamon.  Place a heaping TBS of the apricot mixture into the centre of each pastry, spreading it lightly out to the sugar coated rim.  Don't be tempted to over fill as the mixture will spread upon baking.     Sprinkle the toasted almonds over top of each, dividing equally.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the filling is bubbly and the pastry is golden and crisp.   Remove from the oven and scoop off onto a wire rack immediately.  Allow to cool completely.

Melt the chocolate in the microwave for 20 to 30 second intervals until quite soft and melted.  Using a fork, drizzle the chocolate decoratively across the tarts.   Serve when cool, with or without some clotted or softly whipped cream.  



I re-rolled the trimmings and made a tasty little plate of bite sized turnovers.  I just couldn't let any of it go to waste.



You could also use the excess to create flaky larger sized turnovers. Oh so scrummy with a mid morning or afternoon cuppa.