1 carrot, chopped
1 stick celery, chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 slice prosciutto crudo, chopped
250g minced beef or veal
1 glass dry red wine
400g thick passata
2 tablespoons tomato puree
� dried bay leaf
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
350g risotto rice
1.5 litres chicken or beef stock, kept simmering
50g unsalted butter
50g freshly grated Parmesan or Grana Padano
Make the ragu first, preferably the day before. Fry together all the vegetables with the oil and the prosciutto until the vegetables are soft. Add the minced meat and the wine. Brown the meat and boil off the alcohol, then add the passata and the bay leaf. Season, cover and leave to simmer gently for about 2 hours or until rich and dense with a bright orange rim around the outside of the pan. If you have made this ahead of time, take it off the heat, cool, chill and refrigerate until
required.
If not, carry on from this point by adding the rice into the ragu. Stir until the rice is looking very dry, then begin to add the hot stock, stirring constantly and allowing the liquid to be absorbed before adding more. Continue to cook the rice in this way, making sure that the rice always absorbs the stock before you add more liquid. When the risotto is creamy and velvety, but the rice grains are still firm to the bite, take it off the heat. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the butter and cheese. Adjust seasoning. Cover and rest for about 3 minutes then transfer on to a warmed platter and serve at once.
This could be done in a slow cooker but risotto is a delicate food and Id probably just recommend using your stove.