Leek and bacon risotto, so good I didn't take a photo!

Hey blog readers!

Last night I made (for the second time) a beautiful oven baked leek and bacon risotto sent to me by some great friends, Sue and Noel, who are always full of fantastic recipe and meal tips.  I must admit I have modified their recipe (which also included artichoke hearts and sage being mixed in towards the end) to be more appealing to the  eating quirks of my children.  I have tried to find the source of the original recipe however Google yields no results even close to matching this.  So here is how I make it:

• 60g butter
• 200g bacon – thinly sliced
• 1-2 leeks, washed, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic – crushed
• 300g arborio rice
• 100ml white wine (plus 1 glass for you whilst cooking!!)
• 600ml vegetable/chicken stock
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese plus extra to garnish

1. Preheat oven to 150 C.
2. Melt butter in large frying oven proof dish over medium heat, add the bacon and cook for 2 minutes until it begins to crisp.
3. Add the leeks to the pan, reduce heat and sweat for 3 – 4 minutes.
4. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
5. Add the rice and stir to coat.
6. Pour in the wine and allow to simmer for a few minutes, then add the stock and stir to     combine.
7. Put on an oven proof lid and bake in oven for 20 minutes.
8. Remove from oven and stir in extra stock if needed (if you are like me your probably didn't measure out all the ingredients exactly and may need a little extra liquid) and cheese.
9. Return to oven for 15 minutes.
10. Serve with extra parmesan.

The best bit, besides it being super yummy, is that the kids ate it happily.  The leeks all but disappear into the risotto when cooked as long as you sliced them thinly.

Thank you Sue and Noel! This is now a family favourite...