Cat's Smoked Bacon, Courgette and Sweet Pepper Risotto

This was sent to me by my lovely friend Cat, who is currently taking a year of being a governess for a rich Russian family and jet setting round the world as a result - lucky lady!

This is my first time of cooking this recipe, so I hope it goes to plan and does the original justice. I will upload the details and photos when I'm done...Here's the ingredients and method which I'm going to follow:

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 red pepper, seeded and finely chopped
175g (6oz) button mushrooms, sliced
250g (9oz) arborio or other risotto rice
900ml (30fl oz) chicken stock, home-made if possible, hot
salt and freshly ground black pepper
225g (8oz) smoked streaky bacon, cut into strips
275g (10oz) small courgettes, diced
25g (1oz) butter
50g (2oz) parmesan, grated, and a few shaved slices
chopped fresh parsley

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan on the Boiling Plate (I used my cast iron Le Creuset wok here), add the onion, garlic and red (green or yellow) pepper, and saute for a few minutes. Toss in the mushrooms and cook for a further minute.
2. Add the rice and stir for 2 minutes. Pour 750ml (25fl oz) of boiling stock and season.
3. Cover with the lid and transfer to the Simmering Oven for 25 minutes (here I left the mixture in the wok but got it to a simmer and put the lid on, I kept it simmering on the hob and that worked fine). Check and stir once during this time, bringing back to the boil on the Boiling Plate, and adding more stock if necessary.
4. Fry and brown bacon on the Boiling Plate in a large non-stick frying pan. Remove and put on to a plate.

Add the courgettes to the fat in the pan and fry until just tender. Put to one side with the bacon.
5. Test the rice: it should be soft on the outside but still have a little bite in the centre. Return to the Boiling Plate to reduce if there is excess liquid. Add the butter, grated parmesan, the bacon and courgettes.

Check the seasoning and serve sprinkled with chopped parsley (or any other fresh herb of choice) and shavings of fresh parmesan if liked. 

Conclusion - Yummy! - Thank you Cat! xx