Risotto with Meatballs

Ingredients

• 350 g risotto rice
• 1 l vegetable broth (glass/instant)
• 1 onion
• 100 g butter
• 125 ml white wine
• 80 g grated parmesan
• 2 small zucchini
• 0.5 bulb fennel
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large tomatoes
• Salt
• Pepper
• 30 g parmesan (piece)
• 30 g pine nuts
• 500 g ground lamb
• 1 Shallot
• 1 Garlic clove
• 1 tsp butter
• Salt
• pepper (ground)
• 1 stale roll
• rosemary (½ tsp each, finely chopped)
• thyme (½ tsp each, finely chopped)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp Mustard
• butter (1 tbsp for frying)
• olive oil (1 tbsp for frying)
• 30 g pine nuts
• rosemary tips

Instructions

1. 1.

   Peel and finely chop the onion. Melt half of the butter in a pot, sauté the onions, add the rice and cook until the grains are translucent. Deglaze with wine and let it evaporate. Gradually pour in hot broth, cooking uncovered while stirring for 10 minutes. Wash the zucchini, trim ends, pat dry and slice into rounds. Boil tomatoes, peel, quarter, deseed and dice them. Wash the fennel, clean and cut crosswise into strips.

2. 2.

   Heat olive oil in a pan, sauté the zucchini and fennel for 5 minutes.

3. 3.

   Stir grated parmesan into the rice and cook for another 5 minutes. Add more broth if needed. Mix in the remaining butter, tomatoes and vegetables, season with salt and pepper. Keep the risotto warm.

4. 4.

   Soak the stale roll in warm water for the meatballs. Peel and finely chop the shallot, sauté it in 1 tsp hot butter until translucent, add crushed garlic and cook briefly, then remove from heat and let cool slightly.

5. 5.

   Squeeze out excess water from the roll and combine with the shallots, ground lamb, egg, mustard, salt, pepper, chopped herbs and pine nuts to form a meat mixture. With damp hands shape small meatballs and brown them in a large pan using hot butter‑oil mix all over.

6. 6.

   Toast pine nuts without fat in a pan.

7. 7.

   Serve risotto on plates, grate remaining parmesan over it and sprinkle with pine nuts. Arrange the meatballs on top and garnish with rosemary.