Quinoa salad

I made this fantastic quinoa salad for dinner. This is what I put together:

quinoa (cooked in vegetable stock, cooled)

sweet corn

arugula

cherry tomatoes

dressing:

olive oil

rice vinegar

salt and pepper

I was asked when I will make this again, that's how good it was. If you like meat, you can top the salad of with organic, thinly sliced, grilled chicken breast.

Rainbow lunch

I made this rainbow coloured salad yesterday for lunch - it's so good and healthy that I am already craving it for today's lunch! 

This is what I put in it:

arugula

radicchio

sliced mushrooms

some mixed nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashew, hazelnut)

one mandarin (sliced)

goji berries

I was out of chia seeds but will use them in today's version - and I will add some fresh mango!

As a dressing I used sweet (honey) mustard mixed with a splash of coconut oil and water. 

Apple and apple

Creating good habits is easier than you think. In the beginning you might have to force yourself to try new ways but then after five, ten, twelve times it feels natural and you don't wanna ever go back to the old ways. The *good* habit I created for myself a while back is drinking vitamins in the morning. 

Smoothies but even more so juices are my morning addictions. Hence, all I use in the morning is either my blender or my juicer. Today I created this fantastic yellow juice made of one whole pineapple (yes, it's sweet) and two Granny Smith apples. So simple, so yellow so good!

Basil quinoa and red plums - vegan lunch

Our simple all vegan lunch yesterday: basil quinoa and season's fresh red plums.

I just washed the quinoa and then cooked it in vegetable stock and made sure all the liquid was absorbed. In the meantime I made a dressing from olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, thyme, rosemary and two handfuls of fresh basil. Make sure to use lots more basil than thyme and rosemary. You want the basil flavour. I sometimes add cherry tomatoes but yesterday I didn't. 

I washed and cut the plums, added some maple syrup for sweetness and a splash of lemon juice. Nutritious vegan lunch that takes less than 20 minutes to make!

Spelt leftover lunch

Two zucchinis, a few carrots, some celery sticks and a whole lot of nothing in my fridge. That happens sometimes. On days like today fir example. On this cold winter morning with chilly bora wind blowing from the east, I decided against grocery shopping and invented a new recipe: leftover spelt; meaning spelt with whatever leftovers there are. 

Here is what I used:

4 medium organic carrots

2 large organic zucchinis

1 celery stick

2 cloves of garlic (I was out of onion, but would have added it otherwise)

250 grams/2 cups of spelt 

extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lemon

a few basil leaves

salt, pepper 

other herbs if you like such as

rosemary or thyme

First off, preheat oven to the highest setting possible. Wash the spelt and soak in in fresh water for at least 20 minutes. In the meantime, wash and chop all veggies into small pieces, you can cut the garlic cloves very small and mix them up with the rest or leave them whole and take them out once the veggies are cooked. Mix all the veggies together, add a splash of olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, herbs of your choice (do not add the basil yet).

In a cooking sheet roast all veggies. Cook Spelt in fresh salted water for about 20 minutes, the same time the veggies need. When the spelt is cooked, strain it, let the water evaporate, then mix veggies and grains in a large bowl. Mix in chopped basil leaves. Let everything stand for a while to let flavours develop. Serve warm or cold. It's whole, healthy and: vegan! My hunny loved it with some not so vegan grated Parmesan cheese. Enjoy! 

Peppino pumpkin

This is Peppino Pumpkin, carved by my own hands! Part of Peppino is now soup! 

I made the same recipe a few weeks ago and served it - amongst other delicious dishes - for Canadian Thanksgiving dinner. It was a complete hit! 

Here is what I used for the soup:

2 cloves of garlic

1 red onion

some ginger roots (I used 2 large ones)

1 glass of prosecco (or white wine)

1 large pumpkin (buy a Hokkaido one if you can get it, I did not find one here)

200 ml/1 cup coconut milk

1 red chili pepper 

extra vergin olive oil

salt

pepper

For the croutons:

bread of your choice, can be a day old

4-5 sage leaves

olive oil

Here is what I did for the soup I served our friends:

Other than cutting and carving the pumpkin, I put it in the oven on the highest temperature for about 15 minutes. Afterwards it's so easy to cut up! I could not find a Hokkaido pumpkin (you can eat the skin as well) so I had to cut the skin off and take out the insides of the vegetable. I then cut the flesh in pieces and put it aside. 

I finely chopped garlic, a red onion, two ginger roots and a chili pepper (minus the seeds) and fried everything in extra vergin olive oil. I added some prosecco and when it had mostly evaporated I added the pumpkin pieces, let them fry for just 1 minute before I added some heated vegetable broth. 

I let the pumpkin cook for about 40 minutes. I then puréed everything and finally added some coconut milk that I stirred in slowly. I added just a hint of salt and pepper.

Right before serving the soup I cut up some bread and fried it in olive oil and chopped sage leaves. 

Since my guests were all Italians, they added some grated grana padano cheese, but it is not necessary. You can also enjoy it completely vegan. Perfect soup for the season! 

Super simple summer RPT salad

Oftentimes I don't even feel like cooking in July and August, thus my sparse writing here. We like to eat cold things I the summer. I love spelt salads with roasted vegetables (will post recipe asap). Today, I worked with what I found in my freezer, fridge and pantry and came up with the creation of my very own RPT salad. Frozen peas, dried and fresh tomatoes, rice and olive oil. I cooked the rice in salt water for only 15 minutes, it needs to be "al dente" - a little bit crunchy inside. I heated the peas and then cooled them in cold water, same with the rice, I cut the dried and fresh, ripe cherry tomatoes in very small pieces, mixed everything together with a bit of extra vergin olive oil, salt, pepper, basil and a tiny bit of lemon juice. Done! This is a delicious salad to serve by itself or with grilled fish or meats. If you have some mozzarella, you can throw it in the bowl or make a second dish: caprese (mozzarella, tomatoes, olive oil, basil, salt and pepper). Easy, light and delicious!

Quick vegan lunch

Spinach and kale were the leafy greens that were popular at my house in Northern Germany when I grew up. We ate a lot of those, especially kale in the winter time. I still love both of those veggies. Unfortunately, Italians are not very familiar with kale; could be because it's a warmer climate and kale needs to get frost at least once before you can harvest it. Instead of kale, I noticed a leafy green vegetable that I had not been very familiar with: swiss chard. Italians eat lots of it as a side dish or as part of a casserole. Even I use it on a regular basis. It's easy to prepare and you can store it for up to three days in the fridge. Here is what I do: 

1) Wash the swiss chard really well
3) Cut it into small, small pieces, not thicker than 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch
4) Throw in salted, boiling water
5) Let cook for about 12-15 minutes
6) Strain and let all the water evaporate
7) In a heated pan add some vegetable oil and some cut up garlic
9) Fry until the garlic gets golden coloured
10) Add your swiss chard to the pan and fry for 3-5 minutes
11) Add water or stock if the greens are about to burn
12) Serve as a side dish or by itself with a slice of bread

Yesterday I found some carrots, swiss chard and green onions in our fridge and came up with this delicious wok dish. If you don't have a wok, a skillet works just fine.

Ingredients (serves at least two):
- 1 swiss chard
- 3-4 medium sized carrots
- 1-2 green onions
- 1/2 liter or 2 cups vegetable stock
- chinese style (chow mein) wheat noodles (70 grams per person)
- garlic (of you wish)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil

Heat vegetable stock. Wash and cut veggies into 1 cm cubes, cut the green onions much smaller than that. In a wok or skillet heat coconut oil. Once it's hot add carrots first as they need a bit longer. Once they get a bit crispy add green onions (and garlic of you wish). Make sure the onions don't burn. After 30 seconds add swiss chard and some of your stock. Let cook for about 8-10 minutes. Once the swiss chard is cooked half way through, add remaining stock and noodles. Turn off the heat. Cover with a lid and let stand for about 10 minutes (see indications for noodles). After ten minutes, the liquid will be absorbed (of not, drain the remaining stock) and what remains is a healthy, all vegan noodle-swiss-chard-carrot-dish you will fall in love with!

Juicy fur and pasta eyes

One ear missing! This is what happens when the photographer is slow and the cookie-lovers are quick.

Easter brunches, lunches and dinners have been invented to impress friends and family with lovely casseroles, cakes, quiches and, of course, cookies. This year get the best compliments for your vegan Easter shortbread cookies.

As mentioned previously, I try to make more vegan choices in my diet these days. When you think of baking, you might wonder how eggs, milk, butter and cream cheese can be substituted by products that do not derive from animals. Well, I have learned so far: they simply can. 

Here is a recipe for my vegan shortbread Easter bunnies and hearts. For about 20 cookies you need:

• Easter cookie cutters such as bunny shapes, but also hearts and flowers are perfect for the occasion
• 100 grams (1/2 cup) soy margarine or soy spread
• 180 grams (2/3) cups of all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• (add 1/4 tbsp salt if vegan margarine is un-salted)

For icing and decoration you need:

• 120 ml (1/4 cup) red berry juice  
• 225 grams (1 cup) confectioner's sugar 
• for the eyes I used "grattini, a small pasta used for soups, but if you have little sugar pearls, even better

Preheat oven to 350 F/175 C. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a bowl beat soy margarine or spread with an electric mixer; make sure it's creamy. Slowly add flour and sugar (and maybe salt, see above). Using your hands make a large roll from the dough. Cut off a slice and roll the dough on a floured work surface. Use cutters to make bunnies, flowers and hearts and carefully place them on the cookie sheet. Mix remaining dough with another slice of your roll. Repeat as long as you have dough. Bake for about 12-15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

For the icing pour the red juice in a small bowl. Slowly add confectioner's sugar and mix with a fork until dense. Brush icing on cookies and add pasta eyes. You're done and ready to hear lots of compliments!

Oat up your morning coffee

During my challenge to integrate more vegan options into my diet and to cut out as much dairy as possible, I was having trouble finding a decent solution for my morning coffee which used to consist of a shot of espresso and about one cup of warm milk. Living in Italy, where it is common to only drink your cappuccino in the morning and at no other time of the day, I have got used to having milk in my coffee only in the morning. Italians drink their afternoon coffee or the one after dinner - always an espresso - either straight up "liscio" or "macchiato" with literally means "spotted" with a dot of steamed milk. Thus, having lived in Italy for about three years, I no longer feel the need to put milk into my coffee after 10 a.m. but before that, I absolutely do.

I have tried rice milk and I found it too sweet, same with almond milk. That's why I have been using soy milk, the one with extra calcium, but it has a tangy taste to it.

Then yesterday, when I was staring at the non-dairy milk isle of the bio supermarket a shop assistant must have seen desperation in my eyes and asked me if she could help me. I explained my morning coffee problem and she simply asked "Have you tried oat milk, yet?". I never had up until then and immediately bought two confections. 

This morning I had a pleasant surprise: I really like my non-dairy coffee with oat milk. I can definitely get used to that. Sometimes it helps to be a bit desperate, I guess.

One egg missing: Vegan muffins

This was easier than I had thought: My goal was to convert a healthy muffin recipe (click here for the original recipe) into a vegan version. I am by no means a vegan, but I am trying to include more and more vegan options in my diet. During my experimentation process and I was surprised to find out that it is pretty easy to convert regular recipes into vegan alternatives. When I looked at the list of ingredients for the healthy raspberry muffins I knew right away that I could easily substitute non-fat milk with soy milk. I only saw one other animal based product: an egg. I did some online research on fantastic vegan recipe and lifestyle websites. Two fundamental tips for substituting eggs in baking are mentioned almost everywhere:

1) add applesauce
2) add ground flaxseed

Since both of those ingredients are already part of the original recipe, I simply doubled the amount of apple sauce and added a bit more ground flaxseed and voilà: the muffins turned out great! Maybe it was my imagination, but I am convinced they are even better than the original ones. Could my impression come from the fact that I know these muffins are animal product free? Since I might be biased I asked my boyfriend V. about his opinion. Without him knowing about the missing egg and the soy milk, he said that the muffins where the best I have ever made!
Okay, I admit that he says this almost every day for anything I cook or bake... but whether they taste better or just the same, these ones are have definitely harmed no animal!
Here is the vegan recipe:

1 1/2 cups (165 g) of oat bran (substitute with wheat bran)

1 cup (250 ml) soy milk
1 cup (200 g) unsweetened apple sauce
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup (60 g) ground flaxseed
2/3 cups (125 g) of brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (140 g) whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (240 g) frozen raspberries 

• Preheat oven to 375 F/190 C
• Grease muffin pan or use paper liners.
• In a bowl mix bran and soy milk and let stand for 10 minutes 
• In a second bowl mix together apple sauce, brown sugar and vanilla, then blend with the bran mix. 
• In a third bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, then add ground flaxseed. Stir the flour and flaxseed mix into the bran mix. Do not over beat. Mix the lemon zest with your berries first, then blend the fruit in with the dough. Scoop into muffin cups.

The muffins should be ready in 20-25 minutes. You can freeze them individually and pop them in the microwave oven in the morning to have a tasty vegan breakfast. 

Organic shopping

Some women go shopping for shoes, purses and dresses. I go shopping for organic food, especially when I am in Germany. Organic products are readily available everywhere in Germany, whereas in Italy, I have to go search for my every day cooking ingredients. However, when I get back to Italy, shoes are definitely on my shopping list!

A different kind of pesto

Why not make a creative pesto with kale or savoy cabbage.

No doubt: Italian cuisine is maybe one of the best in the world, but I find many Italian restaurants and famous TV chefs are too focussed on the traditional recipes, and this can get kind of boring after a while. Luckily, my friend Jenny who lives in Canberra provides me with the original Australian version of the Donna Hay Magazine. I find great inspirations in her creative style cooking. My problem, however, is to find some of the ingredients the Australian chef calls for. As astonishing as this might seem to anyone living in Sydney, Toronto, L.A. or New York City it is hard to come by dried seaweed, shiitake mushrooms and peanut oil in rural north eastern Italy. I even went to the local market in Venice a few times where you can buy the loveliest and freshest fish as well as local fruits and vegetables, but I still could not cross out "lemongrass" and "thai basil" from my shopping list.
Whenever I find a recipe in the in the magazine that calls for common Italian ingredients I give it a shot.  I made Donna Hay's kale pesto a few months ago and it was delicious. Last weekend, I was thinking about it again. I had all the ingredients at home, except for the kale. Too lazy to drive around looking for it, I used savoy cabbage instead and liked the pesto even more than the kale version.
Here is the recipe of my savoy cabbage and almond pesto (adapted from Donna Hay's kale and almond pesto). You will need:

2 cups of blanched savoy cabbage leaves (remove big stems)

1 cup fresh parsley
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup of toasted almonds
2 red chillies
1/3 cup grated Grana Padano (Donna Hay suggests Manchego cheese)
1/2 cup olive oil and some extra for drizzling the almonds.

Cook the savoy cabbage for less than a minute, that way it retains its great colour.

Heat a pot of salted water (sea salt) and once it boils add your washed savoy cabbage leaves. I cut off the hard stems, but leave in the little ones. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, strain and let all the remaining water evaporate (this is very important). I usually do not only cook the 2 cups of cabbage that the recipe calls for but the whole thing. Whatever I do not use, I serve as a side vegetable. For a side dish just drizzle some olive oil and lemon over it. Can be enjoyed cold or hot.

Preheat oven to 375 F/190 C. Place almonds, chillies and garlic on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, drizzle with olive oil and roast for 8 to 10 minutes or until almonds are golden brown. Watch out, because from one second to the next, your almonds can burn. Let cool for a minute, then deseed the chillies. Place chillies, almonds and garlic in a food processor then add the kale, parsley and cheese, process until roughly chopped then add your olive oil and stir gently.

Donna Hay suggests to serve roast chicken and pesto together with some veggies or potatoes. When I told my boyfriend V. I would prepare some chicken for him he could eat with the pesto he just frowned. "Chicken and pesto? That's not Italian. I will have some pasta with the pesto, thanks." Italians, eh?! What can I say?

Vegan tip: Just leave out the Grana Padano cheese or, if you prefer, substitute with soy cheese or sheese and you have a fantastic Vegan pesto.

Storage tip: Your pesto will be good in the fridge for a week or even ten days. Put it in a glass and pour some olive oil on top, this will keep the pesto from drying.

When processing your ingredients, make sure not to overdo it.

No need to knead

Better than any bread from your local bakery: home-made artisan bread.

Thanks to my Norwegian friend Kristin I made my first no-knead bread about three weeks ago. She suggested I would give it a try, because Norwegians just like Germans love a hard crust on their fresh bread and she thought I would like it. Would I ever?!?! This is the most delicious bread I have made so far and it really is almost no work at all. By now, I must have already made about six loaves and I want to share with you how it's done. It's so easy.

I basically watched the youtube video by the inventor of this great method, Jim Lahey, from Sullivan Street Bakery in New York. I'ld suggest you watch the video by clicking here.
I tried the recipe exactly as it was suggested and loved the first loaf, but then made little alterations and now I even like it better. You need:

3 cups or 384 grams all-purpose or bread flour
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 5/8 or 406 ml lukewarm water

After step one, the dough will look like a big lump, just cover it.

After 18 hours the dough is smooth, ready to be folded. 

Your house smells like a bakery when the bread is done.

• Step 1) In a large bowl add flour, yeast and salt and mix the dry ingredients. Add 1 and 5/8 cups or 406 ml lukewarm water and just mix with your hand, no need to knead! Cover with a towel and put in a warm place for at least 12 hours, but 18 hours is even better, I find.
• Step 2) After 18 hours the dough should be smooth. The yeast did all the work, not your hands. Carefully place the dough on a dusted parchment paper (I use oat meal for dusting) and fold the dough over from the corners to the middle (watch above mentioned video for details). 
• Step 3) What Jim leaves out in the video is that you should let the dough rise again for at least 30 minutes, better one and a half hours. 
• Step 4) Place an oven-safe pot that has a heat-proof lid in the oven and preheat to max. (225 degrees celsius is mine, Jim suggests 500 degrees fahrenheit). Detach the dough from the baking sheet and place it into the hot pot. I just flip it over and it comes off easily. I then dust the dough with some more oat bran. Quickly put on the lid and place it in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on, then another 20 minutes without the lid. Done!

The crust on this bread is amazing. To me and my boyfriend V. this bread tastes better than any artisan bread at the local bakery. It seems like a lot of waiting in between steps. That's why I came up with a schedule that works for me. Here is what I do: I make the dough at around 6 p.m. before I get supper ready, it takes literally 2 minutes, no dirty dishes except for the the measuring cups. The day after at around 10 a.m. I fold the dough. At 11.30 I preheat the oven and at noon I put the bread in the oven. At 12.50 p.m. the bread is ready for lunch or it will be cooled down later-on for supper. Do the calculating and see what schedule works for you. 

Of course I did not only make white bread, but tried some variations. My favourite is this whole wheat bread with flaxseed.

The whole-wheat bread does usually not last more than 12 hours in my house.

1 cup  or 128 grams all-purpose flour
2 cups or 140 grams whole wheat flour
1/4 cup flaxseed
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt 
some oat or wheat bran or cornmeal (I used oat bran)

With your hand just gently mix the ingredients, no kneading at all.

You get a smooth dough without kneading after 18 hours of no work.

The process is exactly the same. Add the flaxseed to your dry ingredients before adding the water. The rest is just the same. This is my personal favourite!

Lovely leftovers

What to do with leftover veggies? Italians would answer by saying: passato di verdure! The other day I had my hopefully-soon-to-be-in-laws over for supper. As a side dish I made crunchy carrots and zucchini (for my recipe click here). They were perfectly crunchy when we had them, but I made way too much of that side dish. Had I heated them the following day, they would have been too soft so I decided to make a soup. It was delish! I will give you two recipes today, one with the leftover vegetables and one with all fresh vegetables in case you don't have already cooked veggies on hand:

Recipe one - with barley and leftovers (serves 4)
The quantities depend on how much veggies you have got left over. I would say, cut up as many vegetables as you like and adjust the quantity of water. The vegetables should fill 2/3 of your large pan to allow enough space to add water.

leftover baked zucchini and carrots (for my recipe, click here)

 "Passato di verdure" with barley and bread. 

2 leeks (cut up)
2 more carrots (cut into small cubes)
2 small potatoes (cut into small cubes)
2 liters hot vegetable stock
salt, pepper and parsley (if desired)
1/2 cup barley
sunflower oil (if needed)

• Heat the stock.
• Wash barley well (at least three times with fresh water or until water is clear), then put in a bowl and cover with water. Let soak for at least 20 minutes or entire cooking time of the soup. 
• Put the leftover veggies in your large pot and let them fry a bit, they should already have enough oil on them, otherwise add some more. Add leeks, let them fry for 20 seconds, they should not change colour, just get a bit translucent. 
• Add remaining veggies and about 1.5 liters of the hot stock. Cover with a lid and let cook on low to medium heat for about 40 minutes. When the vegetables are cooked, put everything into a blender and blend. That's your "passato di verdure".
• Put the "passato" back in the pan, add remaining stock and barley, let cook for 15 minutes over low heat or until barley is cooked. Do not overcook. Add salt, pepper and parsley. Serve with fresh bread (recipes will follow soon) or kamut sticks or grissini ("bibanesi di kamut" they are called here)

Recipe two -  all fresh veggies without barley (serves 4)

6 medium size carrots (cut into small cubes)

4 small size zucchini (cut into small cubes)

2 leeks (cut up)

2 small potatoes (cut into small cubes)

1.5 liters hot vegetable stock

salt, pepper and parsley (if desired)

1 tbs oil (I use sunflower oil)

• Heat the stock.
• Heat oil in the pan. Add some carrots and leeks (not all of them, just a few to fry in the oil for better taste). The leeks should not change colour, just get a bit translucent.
• Add hot stock and remaining veggies. Cover with a lid and let cook on low to medium heat for about 40 minutes. When the vegetables are cooked, put everything into a blender and blend. That's your "passato di verdure".
• Add salt, pepper and parsley to taste. Serve with fresh bread (recipes will follow soon) or kamut sticks ("bibanesi di kamut" they are called here).
• If you wish you can add barley, follow steps from recipe one.

We have vegetable soups all the time, you can use all kinds of different vegetables. I love to see what colour the soup turns out to be. Always a great surprise!

Not just rice, risotto!

Creamy risotto - the more often you make it, the better it gets. Don't give up.

Before I moved to Italy, I had never made a real risotto and I admit that I was really intimidated as I had heard a million times how difficult it is to make this dish. My boyfriend V. asked me pretty early in our relationship if I could make risotto for him, since I loved cooking so much. I choked, smiled and said "sure". Then I started a day long internet research and consulted all the cook books I owned to understand how to make a real Italian risotto. I combined three recipes, planned the cooking process down to the littlest detail and made my first risotto. It turned out alright. V. loved even my first not so perfect version. I improved over time and now I make it about once a week. Every time I made risotto I learned a new things and even included tips from V.'s mum, grandma and aunts.

Risotto is so versatile as you can throw in whatever you have in your fridge. I love to put in one large zucchini and two carrots for example. I made a truffle risotto yesterday, so I will let you know how I made this one, but you can put in anything you want. This recipe is for two eaters.

Step 1: Italian "soffritto"

Before you start, heat the stock, you will need it later.
Making "soffritto" is the most challenging part, but the most important as well. "Soffritto" is what Italians use as a basis for most pasta sauces, soups, risottos and even side dishes. You need the following:

1 carrot
1 small onion
1/2 stick celery
1 tablespoon olive oil
some water or stock

Cut the veggies in very small pieces, the smaller the better, don't be lazy, this is important. Heat oil in the pan but make sure it does not get too hot, low to medium heat is fine. Throw in your veggies and heat slowly. The onion should not burn. You can add water or stock to prevent the veggies from burning. The "soffritto" is ready when the veggies are soft. This takes about 15 minutes.

Step 2: Add the rice

You need:
1/3 cup (75-80 g) risotto rice per person
1/4 cup of white wine
750 ml of hot broth (I use vegetable broth, but you can also use chicken broth)
a few grams of sliced/grated truffles

There are various kinds of rice you can use, the most common type is Arborio, however, I use Vialone Nano. Try different kinds every time you make risotto and you will know which one you like the best.
Do not wash the rice (unless it's brown rice), you need the starch for the risotto.

Add the rice to your "soffritto", turn up the heat to high and stir. After a minute the rice becomes translucent. That's the moment when you need to add your wine.When all the liquid is evaporated (less than a minute), add your first ladle of hot stock and stir gently just to make sure that the rice does not burn on the side of your pan.

 The rice should looks like this after the wine has evaporated.

This is the moment when you put in your veggies such as zucchinis or carrots or in this case the truffles. You can also add a pinch of salt here, but for me, the stock usually is salty enough. Do never put on a lid. Wait until the water is 95 per cent evaporated, then add the next ladle of stock. Repeat this process until either your stock is used up or (this might be sooner or later) the rice has the right consistency. To determine this, you need a bit of experience. When the rice is soft outside and still a bit crunchy inside, I start the following step. Important: start step 3 when the rice is still a bit "harder" than you would actually like to eat it.

Step 3: the final act

You need:
1/3 cup (35 g) grated parmesan or grana padano cheese
1 teaspoon butter (if you like, I don't personally, but it makes the risotto creamier)

On your last ladle, when your rice is a little bit "harder" inside than you would like to eat it, and there is still some liquid around the rice, add the cheese (and butter if you like), put on the cover right away and turn off the heat. Let stand (do not stir) for two minutes. After two minutes, open the lid, stir up the risotto and serve right away!

Italians eat rice as a "primo" after your appetizer and before your main meat dish, however, V. and I often eat only risotto for lunch maybe with a side salad. 80 grams per person does not seem to be a lot of rice, but Italians are very picky about their pasta and rice measurements, because they actually do what we all know: cut down on your carbs!

If your risotto does not turn out perfectly well the first time, do not give up, make it often and you will improve over time. You know you got it right when the inside of the rice is still a tiny bit crunchy and the outside is super creamy - and then you want to make it all the time! I promise!

Vegan tip: Your risotto will still be creamy without the cheese or with any substitute cheese, use a neural tasting oil instead of butter.

Crunchy carrots

Toss veggies in a bowl with some olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and green onion.

There is nothing healthier than vegetables - and luckily I love them. I prepare them in many different ways, but one of my favourite methods is to grill them in the oven. I made carrots today, however, you can use all kinds of different veggies, just make sure you cut them all about the same width and length. I often use zucchini and carrots together, they make a delicious and colourful combination.

You will need
veggies (about 800 grams, serves 2 as a main dish and 4 as a side dish)
half green onion
one clove of garlic
two teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil (chili flakes and sesame seeds are optional)

Place the carrots on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Here is what you do:

• Preheat the oven to the highest temperature possible if you want to eat right away. If you have some time on your hands, prepare everything and let it sit for 30 minutes before turning on the oven.
• Wash and cut the veggies (I peel the carrots but not the zucchinis), make sure all vegetable sticks have about the same thickness and length. 
• Finely chop the garlic and green onion.
• Place everything in a large bowl.
• Add about 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil. Go easy on the oil, you won't need much.
• Add salt and pepper and maybe some chili flakes. I also added sesame seeds, but I recommend. you leave it at salt and pepper for the first time, the taste of the vegetables will amaze you. 
• Toss everything really well and if you are not in a rush, cover the bowl and let it sit for about 30 to 45 minutes, this will bring out the flavours even more. 
• Place the veggies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Put your oven on the grill function and cook for 10 minutes, then turn the veggies and grill for another 10 minutes the most.

The veggies will be crunchy and very tasty. We often times have just the veggies for dinner, maybe with a slice of bread, however, it also makes a great side dish that goes well with any kind of fish or meat.