Simple suppers: Green spelt risotto

Making something out of nothing. It's an interesting conundrum. By nothing I don't mean nothing, but creating something from what you have. Living within your means; not being overly greedy. Our grandparents were pretty good at it and I have distinct memories of it when I was kid. Nothing was wasted and in the weekends we'd make do with anything leftover. I never complained when we had sardines on toast or canned soup. Sometimes dad would make his special 'chow mein' with instant noodles and whatever else he could find to throw in. He was pretty proud of it and each time we'd hear about how he'd made improvements from the previous version - clearly on his way to reaching the true heights of Asian authenticity. Now it's a memory we use to tease dad.

University days forced me to make do - in a flat of five girls there was never a scrap of food left at the end of the week. I often get hungry after I go to bed and have to sneak back to the kitchen for a midnight snack. Far less glamorous than Nigella, my midnight indulges during university often consisted of bread toasted to conceal the all too apparent staleness. I'd flavour it with a slap of butter. If there was any left. Come shopping day we were like a pack of hyenas circling around, mouths watering over the replenished supplies.

But as our generation has forged ahead in life and careers, I can't help but think we are a generation of excess. We want the best of everything, we love eating out and drinking is our favourite pass time. It's fantastic that we have the means to do all of this, but sometimes I like to remind myself that it's not all really necessary. After a weekend of excess and a fancy dinner out earlier in the week, I felt a teeny bit guilty. So I decided to make dinner with more or less what had left in the fridge, freezer and cupboards. I had been wanting to try making spelt risotto for a long time so I purchased my farro and set about making something out of nothing. Me and my buddies around the dinner table were all pleasantly surprised - it was good. Wholesome and healthy and definitely not overly indulgent. You could substitute any of the vegetables with whatever you have lying around. Pumpkin would be good with kale or spinach.

Recipe
olive oil
1 cup pearled spelt (the packet I bought didn't say it was pearled but you could tell the grains had been rubbed as they were white in parts)
1-2 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 small onion finely chopped
1/2 broccoli
1/2 cauliflower
handful of kale
peas - frozen or fresh
zest and juice of half a lemon
splash of white wine
2 cups of vegetable stock
parmesan
s + p

Put half of the broccoli and half of the cauliflower in a food processor and blend until fine. If you don't have a processor finely chopping will do. Chop the remainder into small florets. Pour stock into a pot and keep hot on a low heat to use for cooking the risotto.

In a pot heat a tablespoon or so of olive oil. Add onion and garlic and saute until translucent. Add the spelt and stir. Start adding stock, half a cup at a time. After about 7 mins add the broccoli and cauliflower florets. Keep adding stock as the last measure is absorbed. Stir in the kale and the processed broccoli and cauliflower. If you are adding peas, throw these in when you add the last measure of stock. all up it should take about 20-25 minutes for the risotto to cook. The spelt will still be firm but have a soft texture.

Once cooked remove from the heat and add lemon zest and juice. Stir then grate in parmesan to taste. Add salt and pepper.

Serves 2