Chickpea Purée Risotto

Soak the chickpeas for 2 hours in cold water; then rinse, drain and cook the chickpeas in a pot for ab. 60 minutes also adding the ½ uncut onion, garlic and bay leaves to the salted water. Once cooked, drain the chickpeas saving their liquid aside. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, add butter along with some EVO and sauté the remaining onion until golden-brown. Then, add in half of the chickpeas and let them simmer. Right after, also add in the rice, toast it and cook it by gradually adding the chickpea water, a ladleful at a time. In the meantime, blend the remaining chickpeas in a mixer together with a few tablespoons of broth. When the rice is half way cooked, incorporate the chickpea cream while stirring to well amalgamate. At this point, remove the pan from the heat, add the remaining butter and the Grana Padano and let it sit for a few minutes with the lid on. Top with a sprinkle of fresh-ground pepper just before serving.