Home Kitchen with Andrea Cavaliere

Risotto verde
This risotto recipe works with any vegetables and you can use whatever is available. Try peas, broad beans, courgettes, mange tout, spinach or any other green vegetables.

Serves four 

Vegetable stock ingredients
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 small onion or the green part of the leek, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
Bottom stalks of a bunch of asparagus, chopped 
2 bay leaves

Method for the stock
1. Put all ingredients into a saucepan and cover with five cups (1.25 litres) of water.
2. Bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes. 
3. Strain and keep warm.

Risotto ingredients
1 tbsp/ 15ml extra virgin olive oil
3 leeks, thinly sliced 
2 garlic cloves, chopped 
2 cups/ 500g carnaroli rice (preferably Riso Acquarello)
¼ cup/ 60ml Gavi di Gavi wine (or any dry white wine) 
2 baby artichokes, quartered
4 cups/ 1 litre vegetable stock (see recipe above)
Bunch of asparagus, chopped
4 squash blossoms
1 large Swiss chard, remove spines and slice (or use baby spinach)
1/3 cup/ 35g parmigiano reggiano 
2 tbsp/ 28g butter 
Fresh mint leaves 

Method for the asparagus puree
1. Bring a medium saucepan with water and salt to the boil. 
2. Add half of the chopped asparagus. 
3. Cook the asparagus for a minute, remove and refresh in iced water.
4. Put into a blender with a pinch of salt, a touch of water and a couple of mint leaves and blend until pureed. Set aside.


Method for the risotto
1. In a small pan, add the extra virgin olive oil, leeks and garlic and soften at a low temperature.
2. In heavy pot with a thick bottom, add the rice and stir until it just starts to get toasted.
3. Pour in the wine and stir until evaporated, then add the artichoke wedges.
4. Pour two cups of hot vegetable stock into the pan and add salt.
5. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat, simmering at a steady bubble for about 14 minutes, adding more stock as it’s absorbed. The liquids should have thickened and the rice grains will have swollen in volume.
6. Add the chopped asparagus and the green zucchini attached to the blossoms for the last two minutes of cooking.
7. Add the chard leaves and remove the pan from the heat. The rice should be ‘al dente’.
8. Finish with the asparagus puree, butter and grated parmesan and stir to create a cream

Final touches: squash blossom petals, more grated parmesan, black pepper, extra virgin olive oil and mint leaves. 


Sweet potato gnocchi with spring vegetable ragout and pistachio


Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes 
170g of ‘00’ flour (or gluten-free flour), plus more for dusting 
¼ nutmeg, grated  
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp of salted pistachios
Zest of half a lemon 
Mint leaves to garnish

Method
1. Bake the sweet potatoes in the oven at 375F (190-191C) for about 40 minutes (or until soft in the middle). 
2. Peel the potatoes when they are still hot, scoop out the flesh and mash in a bowl until smooth. Add salt, pepper and the grated nutmeg.
3. Add the flour and knead gently, but don’t overwork it or the dough will get sticky and gluey.
4. Add more flour if needed, but the goal is to use as little flour as possible to get fluffy and soft gnocchi.
5. Cut the dough into strips and roll into a rope shape around ¾ inch (2cm) thick and cut the gnocchi irregularly.
6. To create the typical gnocchi ridges, place the dumpling at the top of a floured fork and gently press down and roll (see video). 
7. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil, add the gnocchi and cook until they float to the top of the water, then scoop out.


Spring vegetable ragout

Ingredients
1 leek, thinly sliced 
1 spring onion, thinly sliced 
2 bay leaves 
½ glass (90-95ml) of Gavi di Gavi wine (or any dry white wine)
1 bunch of asparagus, cut into ½ inch (12-13mm) segments 
20-25 sugar snap peas, cut into ½ inch (12-13mm) segments
Extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. In a cold skillet, add the extra virgin olive oil, leeks, spring onions and bay leaves. 
2. Keep the temperature medium to low until the leeks and spring onions just start to caramelise. 
3. Pour in the white wine and braise slowly until all juices are evaporated. 
4. Add the rest of the vegetables and half a glass (90-95ml) of warm water, then allow to cook for about three minutes.
5. Add extra virgin olive oil and stir to emulsify the cooking juices.
6. Add the sweet potato gnocchi and let them get slightly crispy. 
7. Remove the pan from the heat and add two tablespoons of salted pistachios, a few fresh mint leaves and the zest of half a lemon.



Whole green curry cauliflower 

Ingredients
1 whole green cauliflower head 
150ml coconut water
1 tub (150g) coconut yogurt 
3 limes 
Garnish with the juice of one of the limes, a teaspoon each of hemp and poppy seeds, chopped coriander and sea salt

Lime coconut yoghurt
½ small tub of coconut yogurt
Juice of half a lime

Green curry paste
2 Thai green chillis, deseeded and chopped 
½ cup of coriander, chopped 
20g fresh turmeric, grated 
A thumb-sized piece of ginger, chopped
1 lemongrass stalk, chopped 
2 garlic cloves, chopped 
2 kaffir lime leaves
1 small shallot (or spring onion) chopped 
½ cup of Thai basil chopped (or sweet basil)
½ tsp coriander seeds, toasted 
½ tsp cumin, toasted 
½ tsp white peppercorns, toasted 
Sea salt 

Turmeric brine
5 cups of water 
1 celery stick
1 garlic clove 
1 tsp coriander seeds, toasted 
1 tsp fennel seeds, toasted 
A thumb-sized piece of ginger, sliced 
A small piece of fresh turmeric, sliced 

Method for the turmeric brine
Bring all the ingredients to the boil and refrigerate to keep it chilled.

Method for the curry paste
Place all the ingredients in a food processor, blender or pestle and mortar. Blend to a smooth paste, adding lime juice if it’s too thick.

Make the cauliflower:
1. Blanch the whole cauliflower in salted water for about five to six minutes until still firm.
2. Plunge the cauliflower into the chilled turmeric brine and leave it until completely cold.
3. Drain the cauliflower and brush it generously with the lime and coconut yogurt mixture, then sprinkle with sea salt and poppy seeds (optional).
4. Bake at 450F until completely roasted and crispy. 
5. Let the cauliflower rest while you prepare the green curry.
6. Combine the green curry paste with the other half of the coconut yogurt and coconut water, bring to the boil and reduce until creamy. Don’t overcook it as it will lose the fragrance and deep green colour.
7. Finish with the garnishes.