Time seems to move so quickly these days. Watching our little one grow from a gooey baby to a busy, noisy toddler really puts the passing of time into another orbit. How can it fly by so quickly?

I love that my days are full to the brim with crayons and finger paint, playdough and duplo. It really is hard to look back and remember a time when I didn’t have our little girls hand in mine and her bright beautiful smile lighting my day. Being a Mum is the best fun and the most rewarding, challenging experience ever!!

Here at Veggie num num there are recipes still waiting to be cooked and photographed and everything has slowed down a little (ahem maybe a lot). I’ve been working on a few other projects in my precious spare time and hope to share these soon. Until then, I’m happy to be able to post this little recipe.

Risotto is a lovely dish and this simple vegan lemon risotto is full of fresh and tasty flavour and a beautiful accompaniment to the grilled tofu & zucchini. This meal would be great to serve to friends on a summers evening when the weather is ripe for a barbeque. The vegan lemon risotto also makes a lovely warming dish on its own served with crusty bread and drizzled with quality olive oil.

Of course you can use your favourite vegetables here in place of the zucchini. Lightly steamed cubes of pumpkin or sweet potato might be nice or ribbons of eggplant or even carrot could be great too. I hope you’ll enjoy this little recipe and I do hope to be back here again very soon.

Lemon Risotto w/ Grilled Tofu & Zucchini
Preparation Time: 40 mins (+ 30 minutes marinating) // Serves 4

Grilled Tofu & Zucchini

• 300g firm tofu, cubed
• 1-2 zuchinni, sliced into super thin ribbions
• 1 lemon cut into pieces
• 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbs tahini paste
• 1 extra lemon, juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• small handful fresh mint, chopped
• Lemon Risotto
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1 brown onion, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 lemons, zest
• 100g baby spinach
• ½ cup unsalted pistachio nuts, dry roasted
• ½ cup raw almonds, dry roasted

If cooking on a barbeque soak 8 bamboo skewers in water for 10 minutes.

Quickly blanch the sliced zuchinni in hot water for 1 minute before rinsing under cold water.

In a small bowl fold the olive oil with the tahini paste, lemon juice & garlic to form a thick marinade adding a little water if necessary.

Thread the cubed tofu and ribbions of zucchini alternately onto the 8 bamboo skewers, finishing with a piece of lemon. Place the prepared skewers into a shallow dish and cover with the marinade, set aside in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Towards the end of preparing the risotto, grill the skewers on a BBQ grill plate or in a grill pan turning until cooked and golden on or sides, keep warm in a low oven until ready to serve.

To prepare the risotto in a medium saucepan bring the vegetable stock to boil; turn heat to low and leave to very gently simmer.

In a large saucepan heat the oil; add the onion and cook for 4-5 minutes until soft; add the garlic, cook, stirring, for a further 1-2 minutes.

Stir in the rice and lemon rind and combine well until rice is well coated in oil.

Using a soup ladle spoon one ladle of vegetable stock into the rice mixture; shaking the pan often until all the liquid has been absorbed before adding another ladle.

Continue to cook the risotto over a gentle heat adding the stock one ladle at a time until all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is al dente (tender); about 25 minutes.

Remove from the heat; stir in the spinach and roughly chopped nuts. Serve topped with prepared skewers and extra lemon wedges.

A delicious vegan risotto full of fresh punchy flavour; perfect for entertaining or a tasty meal at home.