Beetroot Risotto

Hi, my Grandparents found this recipe in their 'Woman's Weekly' magazine and passed it on to me. I tried in during half-term and used up a few leftovers. I didn't use the parmesan as we have lots of cheddar at the moment and we also did not use the goats cheese as my sister doesn't like it. Also, I halved all the amounts as it says serves 4-6 and I only needed it for two people. But, I did use 2 beetroots from a vacuum pack at Tesco rather than a fresh one. The picture doesn't do it justice as the pink colour that it was didn't come through.But, I hope you... Enjoy!

Dietary Info:
-Contains Dairy
-May contain Gluten {Check the rice you use}
-No Nuts
-Suitable for Vegetarians/Peskitarians
-Unsuitable for Vegans
-1 of your 5-a-day {The beetroot}









Ingredients:
-2 small to medium beetroot {You can use whole fresh beetroots, if you do follow the first step but if you , like me, use vacuum packed or pre-cooked beetroots you can skip the 1st step but remember to grate or finely chop the beetroot}
-Good knob of butter {Keep this the same even if you half it}
-1tbsp olive oil {Keep this the same if you half it} {I used extra virgin olive oil}
-1 onion, peeled and finely chopped {Do half an onion if you need lunch for 2}
-4-5 fresh thyme sprigs, plus extra to garnish {I used about 2tsp of dried thyme}
-350g Risotto Rice {Or 175g if you are halving it}
-200ml White Wine {If you prefer or don't want to buy alcohol, you can substitute it for 200ml of chicken stock with a few drops of lemon juice. I did this and it added a really nice chicken-y taste to the risotto} {If doing half, do 100ml}
-750-800ml hot stock chicken or vegetable {I did vegetable as I substituted the white wine for chicken and I didn't want two lots of chicken stock} {For half, I did 400ml}
-30g parmesan {I did 50g of cheddar cheese as the parmesan has a stronger flavour than cheddar and I wanted to taste the cheese but if using cheddar cheese for 4 people do 100g} {If following the recipe correctly , and halving everything, do 15g of Parmesan} 
-Handful of snipped chives {I didn't use these}{For half just do a sprinkle of chives rather than a whole handful}
-45g of soft goats cheese {I used slices of cheddar cheese on top and did as much as I wanted} {For half, do 20-25g for exact amounts , do 22.5g}

Method:
1: Preheat the oven to 200℃/℃/℉/Gas 6.Wrap each beetroot in foil and roast for 45-50minutes until tender to the point of a knife. Allow to cool for a little, then peel, grate and set aside until needed. {If using pre-cooked just grate them straight away and , if needed, peel but mine were also pre-peeled}.
2: Meanwhile, melt the butter and oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions and thyme and gently fry for 5mins until softened. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains. Cook for 2mins, until the grains are translucent.
3: Add the wine {Or stock. Don't worry if you get a big burst of steam at this point it is just the heat reacting and will calm down quickly. But, do be careful and take a few steps back as steam can burn you.} and stir until absorbed, then gradually add the hot stock, a ladleful at a time, stirring until each is absorbed. {I just tipped a bit in at a time probably in 1/5ths}
4: When the rice is almost cooked, but still has some bite, add the final bit of stock , remove from the heat and stir in the parmesan {Or cheddar} and grated beetroot. Season well. {I used salt and pepper}. Stir and cover, then leave to stand for 5mins. Stir in the chives {If using}, then spoon into bowls {Or onto plates} and scatter over the goats cheese {Or cheddar} and thyme sprigs {Or dried thyme about 2tsp}.