Orzo risotto with Gorgonzola and mascarpone.

4.99 from 56 votes

Orzo risotto with Gorgonzola and mascarpone.

This divine Italian orzo risotto with Gorgonzola and mascarpone is a 5-star restaurant quality dish that's actually super simple to make and calls for just 3 main ingredients apart from the orzo/risoni pasta. Perfect for special occasions or for when you just want to spoil yourselves with something special.

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Course: Main Course, starter

Cuisine: Italian, Northern Italy

Keyword: orzo recipe, pasta gorgonzola, pasta risotto, risoni recipe

Servings:

Calories: 609kcal

Author: Jacqui

Equipment

1 Dutch oven or heavy pot
1 saucepan to heat broth

Ingredients

9 oz orzo pasta (risoni) I used orzo made by Garafalo.
6.5 oz Gorgonzola Dolce or vegetarian blue cheese
6.5 oz mascarpone for substitutes see main content.
2 pints vegetable broth You may not need it all.
salt to taste and for grapes
freshly ground black pepper. to taste
2-3 tablespoons olive oil one for grapes

For toppings

16-20 seedless grapes
2 fresh pears peeled and cut into small cubes.

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prepare the ingredients

Remove the skin from the Gorgonzola and cut it into chunks.

Cook the orzo risotto

Heat the vegetable broth in a saucepan
Toast the orzo pasta in a heavy pan in olive oil for a minute, stirring continuously. Don't let it turn brown
On a low heat, add a ladle of hot broth to the pasta and stir. Continue to add broth a little at a time whilst stirring continuously until the pasta is almost cooked. Like making risotto.
Add the gorgonzola and mascarpone and continue to stir until the cheese has melted and the pasta is cooked. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

To prepare toppings

Roast the grapes in an oven dish with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt for about 20 minutes. They should be soft and slightly brown.
Peel the pears and cut into small cubes. This is best done just before serving.

Plate and serve.

Serve the pasta risotto as soon as it's ready, topped with grapes and pieces of pear or if you prefer just with Parmigiano.

Notes

To make this recipe vegetarian you will need a vegetarian blue cheese such as Italian Dolcelatte, and a vegetarian parmesan if using.

For leftover suggestions and ingredient substitutions, see main content.

Nutrition