barley and millet risotto

I owe you people a decent post. Look, here I am! With words! Lots and lots of words, and a smattering of hyperlinks, just for you! :)

Not gonna lie: I think my frequency of posts was affected by two things:

1. Getting an iPhone (it's okay, I was shocked too)

2. Getting on Twitter (again... it's okay, I was shocked too)

In the long run, I think both of these things will be useful. Turns out I take way more pictures if I use my phone (and hey, the 4S has a lovely camera on it, believe it or not), and editing photos is way, waaay too much fun for me. My phone has also given me an appreciation of the square-format photo... it's beautiful! Regardless of Instagram's influence, it makes so much sense for me to love a square photo, given how much I love symmetry. I find it much easier to take a picture that looks balanced (at least for me eye) with a square photo. And really, if you don't believe me, go take a standard format photo and then crop it as a square -- I think you'll like it better. As for Twitter... well, the Twitterverse is still vast and mysterious. I barely have an idea of how hashtags and handles work, but somehow it intrigues me. For now, I like it mostly as a source of information. It's absurd how much you can learn from a well-selected Twitter feed. It's by far the fastest and farthest reaching networking I've ever done. I just hope nobody minds my occasional, inane posts of "Look at my dog! XD #cutestthingintheworld #puppykisses #snugglebug".

So I've got lots to talk about, but I think I'll just have to divvy it up amongst more blog posts soon. For now, I direct your attention to the archives of 101 Cookbooks for this lovely spin on risotto. Our kitchen is a risotto loving one, but it's nice to try a different approach from time to time. Heidi calls for farro, but I am too poor to stock farro in my pantry. If you can snag some you should try it, it's delicious. If you are also a cheep-cheep person, stick to pearled barley. As usual, I chopped some kale and threw it in -- I think the chewy texture went well with the grains. This was also my first time trying out millet; what a cute little grain. I've seen some breakfast millet ideas flying around the internet, and I think that's got some potential. If you know of any good uses of millet, let me know -- I've got a cup or two to use up someday. :)

curried pumpkin risotto with chorizo spinach hash

I think this might be a first for me. I made something for dinner that required not one, but two whole components! At this rate, maybe I'll learn to appreciate side dishes or something. But I guess I shouldn't get too carried away here...

Given that this post includes pumpkin and butternut squash, I suppose this will suffice as my entrance into autumnal cooking. Not gonna lie, when I started seeing posts like this one and this one popping up, I thought folks were being a bit preemptive. It was the first week of September! And sure enough, we had one more 87 F day (okay, and yes, in contrast, it is currently 45 F outside this morning), which proves that we weren't quite there yet. After all, the first day of fall is actually September 23rd.  So if you'd like to follow suit, get yourself some hot chocolate, bake some bread, or at the very least, make something with cinnamon and/or nutmeg in it. :)

So check out this recipe. It is pretty intense, and probably hits my uppermost limit of seasoning. But I have to admit, adding pumpkin to risotto is a great idea. If I made the risotto by itself (this probably will happen someday!), I'd add some blue cheese at the end.  By the way, you really only need half of the butter they call for. 4T. for 1 c. of arborio rice is totally excessive, so 2 T. butter and maybe 1 T. olive oil will do the trick. Also, I used veggie chorizo here and a giant bag of spinach because that's what I had. I hope to try this with kale or chard sometime. Or really, I'd just like to learn to appreciate kale. And beets. Maybe together someday? Any suggestions out there? I'd love to hear about them.

fresh corn and basil oil risotto

    Oh man I have no idea how long it has been since I've shucked corn. What a great word -- shucks! I think I'll have to integrate "Aw, shucks!" into my usual rotation of favorite everyday phrases.  This was also the first time I've ever zipped the corn off of the cob. I think the last time I ate fresh corn off of the cob was when I had braces. As a result, I have a serious appreciation for my folks doing this for me when I was a teenage brace face. I had no idea it was so hard to do tidily! Does anyone have a slick way to shave off the corn without firing it all over the kitchen? I've been told I can't have a doodad for this purpose (and rightfully so -- I don't think I can manage to keep many more silly gadgets around for a task I only need to worry about a month or two out of the year).                          So yeah, sweet corn is great. It is even better when you meet the farmer and he looks you straight in the eye and tells you he picked it that very morning. I'm looking forward to finding new ways to enjoy it, particularly because of food52's recent Corn off the Cob Contest. I've also heard a rumor that one of the new foods for the Minnesota State Fair this year will include sweet corn ice cream! I am totally sold and my assumption is that it will taste like Corn Pops. Maybe I'll finally get the risotto on a stick this year too. :) 

Fresh Corn & Basil Oil Risotto

(adjusted from Cooking from the Farmer's Market to use the market goods in my pantry)

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. fresh basil leaves, packed

2 T. butter

1 1/2 c. arborio rice

1 small white onion, diced

1/2 c. scallions, white and light green parts chopped

3-4 ears of fresh sweet corn

4 c. veggie broth

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Tear up the basil and soak it in the olive oil.

2. Heat up the broth in a saucepan with the lid on. You just want it to be warm, simmering at the most.

3. Melt the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat.

4. Add the onions and scallions, stir to coat with butter, and cover for 4-5 minutes until translucent on medium-low heat.

5. Add the rice and stir for 3 minutes on medium heat (keep it there now). You'll see the rice turn clear around the edges.

6. Add 1/2 c. of hot broth to the skillet. Stir continuously. When the liquid is absorbed, but before the rice is dry, add another 1/2 c. of broth. Keep doing this for 10 minutes.

7. Add the corn (yay!), and continue adding liquid 1/2 c. at a time for another 10 minutes. I find the absorption rate of the rice decreases over the course of the 20 minutes of stirring (you may need a substitute stirrer at some point. Offer to trade with ladling broth; it seems fair!).

8. Turn off the heat and add the basil oil.

9. Serve and enjoy! 

fresh sugar snap pea risotto

I seriously missed going to the Farmers' Market. I've been hemming and hawing, talking about it, pussyfooting, being cheap, sleeping in, just making excuses... and then I finally just decided to go because it makes me happy. My husband and I used to go all the time, but we got out of the habit last year somehow.  I stocked up on rhubarb, mint, and sugar snap peas. I also got some seedlings of lavender and beets. I tried lavender from seed, but nothing germinated. These little guys are already acclimated to our herb box in the garden. The rhubarb has already been incorporated into a strawberry rhubarb crisp (we have a glut of strawberries because they're so cheap right now -- can it be fruit season all the time??), and the mint has been combined with sugar and water for mint syrup. I'm anticipating hot days that require freshly made minty lemonade. 

One of my favorite market items has to be the fresh sugar snap peas. They're almost minty, but super crisp and sweet. I like them straight out of the box. A day or two before I went to the market, I asked my husband to pick a recipe from the Cooking from the Farmers' Market Cookbook, a beautiful cookbook that I wish we would use more often. He chose this risotto, and it was a mighty fine choice, and a great way to showcase the sugar snap peas. Warning: if you've never made a risotto before, you are in for a treat! Just to let you know though, it involves a lot, A LOT of stirring. But it is worth it for the creamy texture, I promise!

Sugar Snap Pea Risotto

3 T. unsalted butter

1 small yellow onion, finely diced (we used two giant shallots + one tiny white onion)

salt 

5 c. broth

1 1/2 c. arborio rice

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 c. dry white wine

10 oz. sugar snap peas, halved crosswise

1/3 c. freshly grated parm

Melt 2 T. butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. 

Add the onion and a pinch of salt and saute until the onion is soft, 5-8 minutes.

Meanwhile bring the broth and 1 t. salt to a simmer over low heat in a saucepan.

Stir the rice into the onions until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the lemon and wine and cook, stirring, until the wine is absorbed. Add 3/4 c. of broth and simmer, stirring frequently, until the liquid is almost absorbed. Add another portion of the broth. Continue simmering, stirring and adding broth until the liquid is almost all absorbed, about 15 minutes. Do not let the rice dry out! Add the snap peas and continue to cook until the rice is tender but still lightly firm to the bite, about 10 minutes longer. Turn off the heat, stir in the remaining 1 T. butter and the 1/3 c. of parmesan cheese, and let stand for 2 minutes.

Divide among shallow bowls, season with salt, sprinkle with cheese, and serve (probably with the rest of that bottle of wine you've opened, eh?).