Refreshing bean risotto

We've made this risotto about three times and each time it's even more delicious than the last. I never used to enjoy risottos as I always found them too heavy and stodgy and ended up walking away from my meal feeling all bloated. But this recipe turns risotto into a refreshing and extremely moorish dish. It's little piece de resistance is simply lemon zest. Somehow that lifts up all the flavours in the dish and turns it into a lively little taste sensation. Some might find the lemon zest too overpowering so worth trying it out with a small lemon to begin with.

We found this recipe on www.uktv.co.uk and modified it slightly. In the spring we used broad beans from the garden which we planted over winter and more recently we've used runner beans which are growing madly around the greenhouse.

Ingredients
100g margarine
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 stick celery
1.5 litres vegetable stock
350g Carnaroli risotto rice
1 large glass white wine
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and chopped
150g broad beans, blanched or runner beans, chopped and steamed
1 lemon, zest only
100g parmesan, grated

Method
1. Melt the margarine in a large pan over a low heat and add the onion and celery and let it soften

2. Add the rice and mix all the ingredients together for about two minutes until the risotto grains become translucent

3. Heat the stock in another saucepan and keep it simmering

4. Turn up the heat under the risotto and add the white wine. Allow it to bubble, stirring the whole time until all the liquid has been absorbed.

5. Add the chopped asparagus.

5. Now for the tedious part. This is the part where you need to make sure you have some good music on the radio and the bottle with the remaining wine nearby. Add a ladleful of stock and stir until all the stock has been absorbed. Add another ladleful of stock and carry on stirring until it's all absorbed. Repeat. Have sip of wine. Repeat.

6. After about 15 minutes of cooking and stirring, add the broad beans or runner beans to the risotto and then carry on stirring in the remaining stock for another five minutes or until the rice is creamy and tender. You may not need all the stock, then again you may need to make more if you run out.

7. When the risotto is cooked, and your arm is aching from all the stirring, remove the pan from the heat and add the lemon zest and parmesan and some extra margarine.

8. Season with freshly ground salt and pepper and leave to stand for a few minutes and there you have it, a beautiful lively zingy risotto!