Perfect Risotto alla Norma | Easy Italian Recipe

Ciao everyone! Welcome to TortellinoTime! Today, we’re diving into a classic Italian dish with a twist – Risotto alla Norma. It’s a delicious and simple recipe that you can easily make at home. Let’s get started!”

Key Chapters:
00:00 – Preparing the Vegetables
01:34 – Preparing the Aubergine
02:40 – Cooking the Risotto
03:18 – Making the Cheese Sauce
04:21 – Assembling the Risotto
04:48 – Final Touches and Garnish
05:16 – Tasting and Conclusion

List of Ingredients:
1 medium-sized aubergine
Sweet tomatoes on the vine (or plum/cherry tomatoes)
1 large clove of garlic
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Handful of fresh basil
Vegetable stock
200g risotto rice
60g goat cheese halloumi
30ml Milk
25g Butter
30g Parmesan cheese

Cooking Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 180°C (fan-assisted) or 200°C (conventional).
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the whole aubergine and tomatoes on the tray. Crush a clove of garlic and add it to the tray.
Drizzle olive oil over everything and season with salt and pepper. Add fresh basil.

Roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the tomatoes and garlic, but leave the aubergine for another 10 minutes.
Blend the roasted tomatoes, garlic, and basil into a smooth sauce. Set aside.

Remove the skin from the roasted aubergine and blend the flesh with a little salt, pepper, and olive oil until smooth.

Break vegetable stock into a saucepan and add hot water to dissolve. Add risotto rice and enough cold water to maintain a 2:1 water-to-rice ratio.

Cook the risotto until almost done, then mix in the aubergine paste, butter, and Parmesan cheese.
Melt goat cheese halloumi with a bit of milk until smooth.
Assemble the dish: start with the risotto, add the tomato sauce, then the cheese mixture, and top with crispy aubergine peels and fresh basil.

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Ciao and welcome. On my Tortellino channel I have made Pasta alla Norma. I’ve also made the Lasagna alla Norma. I will put the links in this video, but today I’ll be making Risotto alla Norma. And trust me, you’re definitely going to like this one. Tray lined up with some baking paper. One aubergine, medium size, goes straight on top. I’ve got some sweet tomatoes on the vine. You can also use plum tomatoes, or you can use cherry tomatoes—entirely up to you. I’ve chosen these ones because they’re nice and sweet. Large clove of garlic, gentle crush. Here it goes, and some olive oil all over everything. Salt. Pepper. Handful of fresh basil. And I’ll put them in the oven for 20 minutes at 180°. Mine is a fan-assisted oven. If you’ve got a conventional oven, set it to 200°. And I’m back after 20 minutes. My tomatoes are cooked. The aubergine needs another 10 minutes, so I left it in the oven. So I’m now going to add everything to a bowl. With the garlic, by the way, I will remove the skin and I will put it in as well, but if you’re not keen, by all means, remove it. I’m going to mix this until I get a lovely and smooth consistency. Just like this. And the smell is absolutely fantastic. The aubergine is also done. I’ll move it to my board. I’ll remove the little head from the top. I’ve cut it in half as I will want to remove the skin, but I need to wait a little because it’s steaming hot. After a couple of minutes, it’s still hot, but a little bit more manageable, so it’s easier to handle, and I’m removing the skin quite nicely. I’ve placed the skin of the aubergine back in the baking tray as I will be cooking it again in the oven. I want it to be nice and crispy as it will be used for garnishing later. So, 10 minutes at 150°. I’m now chopping the aubergine into rough pieces, and I will be adding this also to a bowl as I will be whizzing it as well. I’m going to add a little salt, some pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. And like I did with the tomatoes, I’ll whizz it until I get a nice uniform paste. And that is perfect. No, it’s better than perfect. It’s excellent. This is a vegetable stock, which I’m breaking into a saucepan, and I will be adding a tiny little amount of hot water—just enough to dissolve the stock. Quick stir with the spoon, and I’m adding a couple of hundred grammes of risotto rice. Followed by some cold water so that I get a ratio of two parts water and one part rice. As soon as the rice starts boiling, I will give it a little stir with a spoon. I will put the lid on, and I’ll turn it down to a simmering position—most probably number 4 out of 9—until it is almost cooked. This is goat cheese halloumi, approximately 60 grammes. I’ve chosen halloumi because I need some goat cheese, but you can use any goat cheese. It doesn’t have to be halloumi. I’ve chosen halloumi because it’s widely available from most supermarkets. But you can, as I said, use any goat cheese. And I’m actually adding some milk to it as well. Quick mix, and the whole thing will become nice and smooth, just like this. And the peel from the aubergine is also done. You should get a nice crispy skin so that you can break it up, and this will be some wonderful garnish for the top of the risotto. And this is very nice to eat as it is. Yum. Although it’s OK, I think I would like my halloumi and milk to be a little bit smoother than it is, so I just placed it on the hob and gently mixed it so that hopefully it will get a little bit creamier. Depending on what cheese you’re using, you might not need to do this, but I thought I’d share it with you. And back to my risotto, which is nearly ready. I will be adding now my aubergine, which I have whizzed. And I mix it in, and I also will add a little butter and some Parmesan cheese. I will let it cook now for another couple of minutes so that the rice will infuse itself with the lovely flavor from the cheese and the aubergine. And I’m there. The rice goes in. Give it a quick wiggle so that it sets nicely. And I’m now adding my cream of tomato on top. Followed by the halloumi and the milk. Followed by the peels from the aubergine. And I’ll finish the dish with some basil. It is Risotto alla Norma, after all. Hmm. Genuinely amazing, to die for. I’m not just saying it, just try it. Buon Appetito if you make it. Buon Appetito if you make something else. Ciao ciao. Bye bye. Thank you for watching.