The risotto with zucchini flowers is a classic, very delicate first course. In summer, it cannot be missing from the table if you find very fresh zucchini flowers.
Risotto with zucchini flowers is prepared quickly with good vialone nano or semi-integral rice, with a special creaming. This time, I used a tablespoon of 100% light almond cream at the end of cooking to cream the risotto instead of oil.
If you’re interested in other recipes with zucchini flowers, I recommend the
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer
- Energy 345.93 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 60.11 (g) of which sugars 2.19 (g)
- Proteins 6.93 (g)
- Fat 8.21 (g) of which saturated 0.85 (g)of which unsaturated 0.29 (g)
- Fibers 1.61 (g)
- Sodium 597.09 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 350 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups Vialone Nano rice
- 1 shallot
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 10 zucchini flowers
- 1 tbsp almond cream (light)
- 2 drops lemon juice
- 1 tbsp hemp seeds
Tools
- 1 Risotto Pan
Steps
Heat the vegetable broth. Peel and chop the shallot. Wash, open by removing the pistils, and slice the zucchini flowers.
This time, I wanted to toast the rice dry, so I used two pans. In one pan, I poured my rice and heated it over medium-high heat, moving it for 3 or 4 minutes until it becomes translucent.
In another pan, pour a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, the chopped shallot, and sauté for a few minutes. Then add the toasted rice, zucchini flowers, let it season, and start pouring some ladles of boiling broth.
Add more broth only when the previous one is absorbed and continue like this until cooked (times depend on the rice, check the package). For a vialone nano, it usually takes 14 minutes.
Turn off the heat, add the tablespoon of 100% almond cream, and cream by gently stirring the risotto. Finally, add just two drops of lemon juice and adjust the flavor, if necessary.
Serve by decorating with more zucchini flowers and some seeds; I used peeled hemp.
Tips from thyme and lentils
If you have leftover risotto the next day, you can turn it into croquettes or sartù, you can also cream with celeriac, or just extra virgin olive oil.
