Pearl barley and beetroot risotto with cauliflower cheese

This is a complete dish from our current evening menu and, even though I’ve done another recipe for barley risotto before, I make no excuse because it’s such an underused food. I also used beetroot a couple of weeks ago but I’m really into beetroot at the moment, so there.

You could cook this dish without the cauliflower cheese and serve the risotto on its own or with something else. But this really is a tasty and complete vegetarian dish.

Serves two

One small head of cauliflower – leaves removed and florets divided
50g butter
50g plain flour
200ml milk
100g mature cheddar - grated
200g pearl barley
One carrot – peeled
½ an onion – peeled
Two cloves of garlic – peeled
A little extra virgin rape seed or olive oil
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
One whole beetroot – fresh or pre-cooked and vacuum-packed

If you’ve got an uncooked beetroot, wash it, trim the root and the leaves but don’t cut into the skin in any way. Place in a pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 to 90 minutes until it’s tender when you insert a pointed knife. Drain, allow to cool a little and then rub the peel off with a cloth. The cooked beetroot then needs pureeing in a food processor or pushing through a sieve.

To make the cauliflower cheese, bring a pan of salted water to the boil and blanch the cauliflower florets in it for two to three minutes. Drain and cool under running water.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the flour and stir, allowing it to cook for a couple of minutes over a low heat. Add the milk bit by bit, stirring all the time to avoid lumps and then bring to a simmer for about five minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, add the cheese and then taste before seasoning with salt and pepper.

To make the risotto, blend the carrot, onion and garlic together in a food processor or chop all very finely. Place in a largish pan, add a slug of oil, the barley and enough water to cover plus another centimetre. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until tender – topping up the water if it appears dry but the aim is to end up with no liquid left.

To serve, place the blanched cauliflower into a heatproof dish, pour the cheese sauce over the top and place in a hot oven for five to ten minutes until beginning to bubble and colour. Stir the pureed beetroot into the risotto (standing back to observe the incredible colour) and spoon onto warmed plates serving the cauliflower cheese on top or alongside.