Due to the extraordinary appetites of my teenage sons and aging rugby player husband, there is always a point in the week when the fridge looks unexpectedly low on contents. It may have looked well stocked in the morning but a return visit late afternoon reveals that there’s been a Saturday morning feeding frenzy. Yesterday was such a day and the option was to resort to a disappointing takeaway or get creative. On this occasion it was a resounding creative success. I will return to this dish again and again as it has potential for a twist here or a tweak there that will make it subtly different. As it stands it is simple and simply delicious. It helps if the Capricorn is still quite firm - being easier to dice.

Ingredients - serves 2 as a main course, or 4 as a starter

200g carnaroli rice (arborio or vialone nano)
25g butter
1 onion, finely chopped
225g young spinach leaves
6 rashers streaky bacon
500ml good chicken stock
20g grated parmesan
1 Capricorn goat’s cheese, cut into 1cm dice
salt, pepper

Method

Wash the young spinach leaves and blanch in boiling salted water for 1 minute then drain and set aside. Cut the rashers of bacon into 1cm lardon. Melt the butter in a large frying pan and cook the finely chopped onion and bacon pieces over a low heat for 5 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent. Scatter in the risotto rice and cook for a further couple of minutes, stirring to coat.

Now pour in half of the stock and some seasoning and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has almost totally absorbed before adding the rest of the stock to the pan. Risotto will take 20 - 30 minutes to reach a point where it is cooked (and that is dependent on your own taste). It may also require a little more liquid towards the end of cooking time so add water if necessary. Once it is almost cooked, fold in the spinach and parmesan, after a couple of minutes the spinach will have reheated and the dish is ready. Remove from the stove, fold in the diced goat’s cheese and divide between warmed past bowls.