Today I’ll show you how I make this creamy pea risotto—in fact, ultra creamy—very simple to make and without using cream. It’s a bit like the classic risi e bisi, but I wanted to make a proper risotto, not a soup.
The preparation is extremely easy, you can’t go wrong. You can use peas from a jar, frozen or fresh ones, and it becomes a vegetarian dish if you omit the cooked ham.
At home this pea risotto is always a hit and we also add grated Parmesan. If you like, you can omit the ham and Parmesan: in that case you also save one Weight Watchers ProPoint. Here is the step-by-step recipe.
For some other risottos, look here:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 1
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup rice
- 3/4 cup peas (from a jar, frozen, or fresh)
- 1 oz cooked ham (lean)
- 1 shallot (or 1 small onion)
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- to taste vegetable broth
- 1 1/2 tablespoon light cream cheese (type: Philadelphia light)
- 2 tablespoon grated Parmesan (or Grana Padano)
- to taste basil
- to taste salt and pepper
- WW points per serving = 11 points
- WW points per serving without ham and Parmesan = 10 points
Preparation
First, prepare all the ingredients. Finely slice the shallot and dice the cooked ham.
Drain the peas well or take them out of the freezer. If you use fresh peas it’s better to boil them in salted water in advance for about twenty minutes.
Prepare some vegetable broth with bouillon: I use organic granulated bouillon that has no MSG and is low in salt.
Gently sauté the shallot and the ham in a teaspoon of oil, then add the rice and stir well for one minute.
Cook the rice by adding a little hot broth each time the cooking liquid evaporates. In short, follow the classic risotto method!
Halfway through cooking, add the peas and continue adding hot broth little by little until the rice is cooked.
Finish by stirring in the light cream cheese, half of the Parmesan, some torn basil leaves, and salt and pepper to taste. Let rest covered for a few minutes.
Here’s our fragrant creamy pea risotto ready. Serve on a platter and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Et voilà!
How delicious and so simple to prepare, right? It’s an ideal dish for the whole family; just multiply the ingredient quantities for the number of servings you need.
Try it and let me know below or in the Facebook Club if you liked it!
Enjoy your meal!
by Giovanna Buono
