Have you ever tried a bell pepper risotto? Creamy and super tasty, and super easy to make.

If you like bell peppers you’ll  definitely love this this bell pepper risotto recipe.
Risotto is one of my favorite dishes, I love risotto with vegetables, with fish, with cheese. Well I actually love what we call “riso in bianco” in Italy, white risotto. A simple risotto made with butter and parmigiano.

This recipe is so amazingly simple you will love it right away. You just need few ingredients and half an hour to create a light, tasty and delicious risotto.

Bell pepper risotto: a versatile creamy paste

This recipe uses a paste made with bell peppers, that can be used to make pasta as well. Usually I buy some bell peppers, then lightly sauté them with onions and blend it in the mixer. This does not get easier than that!  I prepare a big quantity of paste and store it in the freezer to use whenever i want.

Try this bell pepper paste on home made fettuccine.
You can freeze the cream into ice cubes molds, so they will defrost easily if you don’t have a microwave.

Bell pepper risotto: health facts

Bell peppers have a lot of amazing qualities. One is the high content of Vitamin C. They also contain a compound called beta-cryptoxanthin, that the body turns into Vitamin A. Bell peppers also contain anthocyanins that protects our brain cells.

Ingredients

For the bell peppers cream:

• 2 medium bell pepper
• 1 onion
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• 50ml of cream

For the risotto:

• 2 cups of rice
• 4 cups of vegetables or chicken stock
• 1 knob of butter
• greated parmigiano to taste
• pepper

Method

Step 1
To prepare the cream wash the bell peppers and cut the stem part. Cut the peppers into chunks and put them into a frying pan. Cut the onion into slices and add it to the bell peppers in the pan. Turn the heat on and, when it start to sizzle, add 2tbsp of water and season with salt and pepper. Let it cook for 8/10 minutes covered with a lid.

Step 2
Put the bell peppers into a liquidizer with the cream and mix until smooth. Put half of the peppers cream into a sauce pan and turn the heat on. Add the rice and let it absorb the flavors for a couple of minutes. Bring the stock to a boil and add it a little at a time to the risotto.

Step 3
Cover with a lid and mix often to avoid it from scorch. See the direction on the rice package to calculate the cooking time. When it is cooked, turn the heat off, add the butter and the parmigiano cheese and mix vigorously. Cover again with a lid and wait a couple of minutes. Serve hot with a sprinkle of pepper.