Weekend risotto

My uncle had a small family gathering at his place this weekend, and as a newlywed, I've made a conscious effort to contribute food to the spread at these events. I had to use up most of the meat off a barbecue chicken (bought at Loblaws earlier in the week), plus about two bowls worth of a homemade carrot soup. I thought it would be interesting to use them both in a risotto recipe.

The breakdown:

• Carnaroli rice (Arborio works well too)


• leftover carrot soup (made with blended carrots, onions, garlic, saffron, salt, a little bit of apple-spice wine and cinnamon)


• butternut squash soup, for the additional liquid


• leftover chicken


• crispy, sliced prosciutto


• one small package of goat's cheese


• one whole Spanish onion, chopped


• one small package of sweet green peas

It occurred to me yesterday that the ingredients end up making something akin to a chicken pot pie. This ends up being one of my favourite risotto combinations.