Spiced Carrot Risotto

Heat your oven to 200°C.

Cut the carrots into small pieces and pop them in a large roasting tin. Add the cinnamon and nutmeg, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat then roast for 35 mins, or until tender.

Meanwhile, finely chop the walnuts and place in a bowl.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat. It will bubble for a couple of mins, then once the bubbles have died down, you’ll see the milk solids sink to the bottom of the pan and turn brown as they caramelise.

As soon as the mix starts to turn a light brown colour, remove the saucepan from the heat, add sage leaves and leave to sizzle for 1 minute.

Add the sage brown butter to the walnuts with the maple syrup and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat and pop in the oven for 10 mins. Leave the nuts to cool while you move back to the carrots.

Place the roasted carrots in a blender with the vegetable stock (just the stock listed until 'For the carrots') and blitz until smooth. Save for later.

Onto the risotto. Bring the stock (the stock listed under 'For the risotto') to a simmer then reduce the heat to low and cover. You want to keep the stock warm over very low heat.

Heat a generous glug of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Finely chop your onion and garlic. Add the onion to the pan and cooking until translucent, then add garlic and cook for a further minute.

Add the risotto rice and cook, stirring often, until the grains begin to look translucent. Now add the wine and let it bubble away, stirring frequently, until the pan is almost dry.

Add one ladleful of the vegetable stock and cook, stirring almost constantly, until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat this process with the remaining stock until the rice is cooked. It should be tender with a very slight bite. The whole process should take around 25 mins. If you run out of stock before the rice is cooked, add one ladleful of hot water at a time and cook until the rice is done.

Stir in the carrot purée, parmesan and butter. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, then cover the saucepan and allow the risotto to sit for 3 mins before serving.