Risotto with Lentils and Sausages

(Recipe from this book)

Serves 4 (I would say more like 6-8)

Ingredients:

• 200 gr / 7 oz green lentils
• 400 gr / 14 oz salamini(a type of luganiga Italian sausage)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2. 25 l / 4 pints chicken stock or bouillon cube
• 1 small onion
• 2 carrots
• 2 celery sticks
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 200 gr / 7 oz potatoes peeled and cut into 5 mm/¼inch dice
• 2 ripe tomatoes, chopped or 2 tbsp passata
• 320 gr / 11½oz risotto rice( carnaroli, vialone nano or arborio )
• salt and pepper

Step One

 Simmer the lentils, salamini and bay leaf in the stock for 15 minutes, covered.

Step Two

 Finely chop the onion, then peel the carrots and cut them along with celery into 5mm/¼inch dice. Fry the onion gently in the oil until soft, but without colouring. Add the potatoes, celery, carrots and tomatoes and fry gently for 2 minutes.

Step Three

 Add the risotto rice and stir to coat each grain. Stir in 1 ladleful of broth, lentils and sausages to the rice at a time, and continue to stir , allowing each ladleful to be absorbed into the rice grains before more is added. Continue until all is incorporated, when the rice should be creamy, but still retain a bite. Check the seasoning and serve.

Tip 1: Use a BIG pan I have a 28 cm one and it was almost spilling out.

Tip 2: I couldn't find the sausage so I just used smoked pork sausage, that I pan fried without adding oil to lose some of the fat, then I used the fat to fry the veggies.

Poftă Bună!!!