Spring Risotto

It's hard to believe that only a year ago I was totally intimidated by the idea of risotto. Today I feel like I can safely say I've got it down pat. I barely need a recipe anymore! I just decide what kind of flavors/ingredients I want to use and I go for it.

Normally risotto is the kind of dish I reserve for the weekend since it is not necessarily quick and easy but I decided to bend my own rules a little bit given that I worked from home for a few hours on Wednesday (Jason and I left work a little early to attend a pre-construction meeting at the home site....assuming all goes as planned, we're about 90 days out from closing!). This time around I went for something springy--lots of green, lots of crunch and very fresh. Overall the risotto came together faster than I remembered and was creamy and delicious. Fennel, leek, asparagus, zucchini, chives and peas....very spring indeed.

Spring Risotto
Inspired by previous risotto recipes from Ina Garten and Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 TBL olive oil
1 zucchini, chopped
2-3 stalks of asparagus, chopped
4 cups of low sodium chicken broth
1 cup of water
2 TBL olive oil
TBL butter
1 leek, white and light green parts chopped
1 fennel bulb, core removed and chopped
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1 cup white wine
1 cup frozen peas
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
juice of one lemon
1/3 cup chopped chives
salt and pepper

1. In a large saucepan, heat 1 TBL of olive oil. Add zucchini and cook for 3-5 minutes until it starts to soften. Add asparagus and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove to a plate.
2. Add chicken stock and water to same saucepan and bring to a low simmer.
3. Meanwhile, heat 2 TBL of olive oil and butter in a large pan or dutch oven. Add chopped fennel and leeks. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add arborio rice. Stir constantly until rice is coated with the fat and vegetables--about 2 minutes.
4. Add wine. Cook, stirring constantly, until rice has absorbed almost all of the liquid.
5. Add chicken stock, two ladles at a time, stirring rice almost constantly until almost all of the liquid has been absorbed. Repeat until rice is thick and creamy (it should take most of the stock)-- about 15-20 minutes total.
6. When rice is almost done, add frozen peas. When rice is done and peas are warmed through, add zucchini and asparagus and stir.
7.  Remove risotto from heat. Add in Parmesan cheese, chives, and lemon juice. Check for seasonings and serve.

Making Sunday Dinner on a Saturday Night

After spending much of the day trying to restore sanity, Jason and I decided to spend a nice quiet evening at home Saturday night.  (Side note: you know you are getting old when you want to spend an evening cooking and hanging out rather than getting dressed up and going to a Halloween party with the rest of the “youth.”) Since we have plans to spend this evening eating chili and passing out candy to adorably dressed children at our friends Matt and Stephanie’s house, I decided to make a recipe I had been wanting to try out for Sunday Dinner: Butternut Squash Risotto.

Although I have chronicled my risotto making adventures in the past, I decided to try a slightly different technique that seemed to offer an alternative to the constant stirring of recipes past. This one, from Cook’s Illustrated, also made use of some distinctly fall flavors that seemed perfect for Halloween weekend. I ended up with a lot more squash than the recipe called for so I stuck the pre-chopped pieces in the freezer for future use.

All in all it turned out well (although be forewarned—if you don’t like sage you will not like this recipe!) and, according to Jason, I can add risotto to my list of specialties!

Butternut Squash with Sage and Toasted Pine Nuts
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

Ingredients:
2 TBL olive oil
3 ½ cups of butternut squash cubes
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
3 TBL butter
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper
2 cups Arborio rice
1 ½ cups dry white wine
2 TBL minced fresh sage leaves
¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
¼ cup toasted pine nuts
¼-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (depending on cheesy you like it)

1.Heat olive oil in a large pan or dutch oven. Add squash and cook over medium heat without stirring for 4 minutes or until golden brown. Add salt and pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for another 4-5 minutes until beginning to soften. Transfer squash to a bowl and set aside.
2.Combine chicken broth and water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil, lower heat to a bare simmer and cover to keep warm.
3.In the same pan/dutch oven you used to cook the squash, melt butter. Once foaming has subsided, add onions and garlic. Add salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened (about 4-5 minutes). Add rice and cook, stirring frequently, until grains begin to turn translucent around the edges—about 3 minutes. Add wine and cook, stirring frequently, until fully absorbed (about 4-5 minutes).
4.Add 3 cups of hot broth and half of the reserved squash. Simmer, stirring every few minutes, until liquid is absorbed and bottom of pan is almost dry (about 8-10 minutes).
5.Stir in ½ cup of hot broth and cook, stirring constantly, until absorbed. Repeat with additional borth until rice is creamy and al dente. Turn off the heat. Add in Parmesan, sage, remaining squash, and pine nuts. Taste for seasonings. If desired, add up to ¼ cup broth to loosen risotto. Serve.

Facing Your (Cooking) Fears

We all have them. Recipes or cooking techniques that seem too daunting to even attempt. For a long time risotto was one of those dishes for me. I think the recipe seemed daunting for two reasons. One, I am not a huge rice eater. And every time I make plain old rice (which is not often) it almost always gets stuck to the bottom of the pan. I assumed if I couldn’t help but screw up regular rice, any risotto I tried out would just not work. The other reason was the constant attention risotto seemed to require. I thought if I have to stand at a pot and stir for 30 minutes or more, it must be hard.

A month or so ago, I asked Jason if there was anything he specifically wanted for dinner and, what do you know, his answer was risotto. So I sucked it up and decided to give it a shot, warning him that we may be eating cereal for dinner if it didn’t work out.

It turned out well. Really well.

So I decided to try it again last night—this time using a more spring-y mix of flavors (asparagus, peas, leeks, and lemon). And you know what? It was even better the second time I made it. Apparently with risotto, like a lot of things, practice makes perfect.

Me 1, Cooking Fears 0

Spring Vegetable Risotto
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated and Smitten Kitchen (combo of two recipes)

Ingredients:
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into ½ inch pieces (my grocery store was out of regular asparagus so I ended up using the white variety—tasted great, just didn’t look as pretty when cooked)
½ cup frozen peas
2 leeks, white and light green parts halved and sliced thin
1 large clove garlic, minced
4 TBL butter
1 ½ cups Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups of chicken broth (preferably low sodium)
1 cup of water
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
½ lemon, juiced and zested
Salt and pepper

1.In a medium saucepan, combine chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil and then turn to low so it barely simmers.
2.In a larger saucepan or dutch oven, melt 1 TBL butter. Add asparagus and cook (stirring occasionally) until tender about 4-5 minutes. Add peas and cook for another minute. Remove vegetables and place in a bowl for later use.
3.Melt another  3 TBL butter in the same saucepan/dutch oven. Add sliced leeks, garlic, salt and pepper and cook (stirring occasionally) until soften about 4-5 minutes. Add rice. Stir to ensure each grain is coated with butter and cook until edges become translucent about 2-3 minutes.
4.Add white wine and stir until liquid is fully absorbed (and bottom of pan is almost dry), about 2-3 minutes.
5.Ladle 1 cup of the broth into the pan, and stir until absorbed. Continue ladling broth in ½ cup of a time, stirring frequently and letting each addition be absorbed before adding next, until rice is just tender and looks creamy, 18 to 20 minutes.
6.Remove from heat. Add ½ cup parmesan cheese and check for seasonings. Stir in lemon juice and zest. And gently fold in reserved vegetables. If the risotto looks too thick, add some of the remaining broth to thin it out.