Creamy lemony orzotto
YOU WILL NEED
100g asparagus spears 1 leek ½ bunch tarragon 1 garlic clove 1 lemon 180g orzo pasta 2 tbsp olive oil 125ml water 10g vegetable stock 100g baby spinach 75g crème fraîche 40g hard Italian-style cheese, grated 20g walnuts
DIRECTIONS
Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Trim the asparagus and chop into thirds widthways. Trim the root and the dark green leafy part from the leek. Halve lengthways then thinly slice. Pick the tarragon leaves from their stalks and roughly chop, discarding the stalks. Peel and grate the garlic. Zest and halve the lemon.
Once the pan of water is boiling, add the orzo, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 10-12 minutes until just tender. Add the asparagus for the final 3 minutes of cooking.
Meanwhile, heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat. Once hot, add the sliced leek and cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the water and vegetable stock. Stir to combine, lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes, until it’s reduced by half.
When the orzo and asparagus are cooked, drain well. Add the orzo and asparagus to the leek pan, stir it through and add the spinach for 1-2 minutes. Stir until the spinach has wilted.
Add the crème fraîche, grated hard Italian-style cheese, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. Stir and cook for another 2 minutes then remove the pan from the heat. Stir the chopped tarragon through the orzo. Taste and season with salt and pepper and add more lemon juice if you like.
Roughly chop the walnuts. Divide the orzotto between the bowls and top with the chopped walnuts.
Recipe and image courtesy of Hello Fresh, hellofresh.co.uk