This fabulous risotto I first came across when travelling in Munich Germany, served to us by our German friend. Although I have made it many times since, it is always different to first time. Maybe it was those German cheeses she used. Beetroot seems an unlikely match for a risotto, but the purple colour of the beetroot makes for an outstanding look to the meal. It will be a fabulous hit for your friends or family.

This dish was inspired by a meal I ordered at a local restuarant. There’s no doubt the original chef-made version was very high fat, but I have recreated it as a healthy alternative. It is a pesto flavoured risotto made with pearl barley instead of the traditional arborio rice. Pearl barley is a high fibre grain that needs to be cooked for longer than rice (due to the unrefined nature of it), and is often soaked overnight for quickest cooking. The feta cheese matches really well with the lamb in this dish, and the tomato just adds colour and a fresh cool flavour.

This simple recipe is so easy to make, and is fabulous for any meal, any time. I particularly like it for taking with me on a picnic, as you can prepare and cook it the night before, then cut it up and enjoy it as finger food with a variety of other nibblies. It is highly nutritious and is one of those dishes where you can use anything in your fridge or pantry as ingredients.

This recipe is a fabulous light summery meal, with a slightly higher degree of difficulty in making, but well worth it! The idea came from the Masterchef series, where the stuffed squid was a pressure test. I have changed it to make it a bit easier to prepare at home, lower in fat, and higher in carbohydrates. Buying already prepared squid tubes is much easier than having to prepare a whole squid – my kitchen is not big enough for that! The salad is so simple and tasty, but I thought after making it that you could combine the rice into the salad to make a great rice salad. The squid stuffing has a great lemony bite.

Risotto is a great one-pot dish and is very quick to make. It is the type of meal that you can substitute whatever ingredients you have in your fridge or pantry. This great tasting risotto is a perfect match with grilled fish. The recipe has been modified from Sally James’ Victor Chang Cardiac Research Cookbook, with the original recipe using beef, which I replaced with fish, as I thought it better suited the lemony risotto.