"Garden" Risotto....

Every time I feel as if I may not be doing the "right thing" with my life, I watch the movie "Julie/Julia" and my spirit is renewed. I don't know if anyone cares about what I'm doing, or if anyone even reads this blog on a regular basis (if at all). All I know is that I absolutely love my life and one day, all the hard work, the nights of 5 hour sleep, being confined within a six block radius and an extremely limited budget (READ: nonexistent budget) will all be worth it. The people that think I'm crazy for leaving a life of stability-yet unfulfilled, to those that don't like me for trying to make a better life for myself and my children-all because I'm trying to find my place in this world...I hope to prove all of them wrong.


With that said, after a day of getting some homework done for the final week of classes-and watching this movie, I'm hungry-and of course I want to cook something rich and comforting because I have now been inspired to do so! LOL 


I have random things in my frig (because I essentially live the life of a bachelor and have not much else than milk, eggs, butter and condiments that I can get at the CVS a block away...lol) and discovered that I had all the necessary components to make risotto!  So then my creative juices started to flow (That's what she said) and added some veggies. As I started to chop and cook I thought "I should take pics and write about this in the blog!" <seeing as though it's been a few weeks since my last posting>


So here it is, my impromptu "Garden" Risotto- made on a whim with just the things I had in my frig, on a muggy June Saturday afternoon...enjoy!




So for starters, you can use any standard risotto recipe and add ingredients to your liking. The key thing to remember is you must continue to add hot stock in intervals and let rice absorb the stock and release the starch-that's what makes it nice and creamy!!

First, I had some bacon in the frig, chopped it up and added it to my pan. You can use Panchetta if you so desire.

add some chopped garlic...

...and some chopped onions...

 I had a bit of red pepper too..

Sweat it all together til onion is translucent and tender

Then add the aborio rice...

Then stir and toast rice for about 2 minutes...

Deglaze with white wine...

and reduce wine til "au sec" <almost dry>

now start to add stock, one ladle at a time...

stir...

let simmer and reduce before adding more stock. Repeat this process 2 or 3 times before...

adding butter...mmmm butter makes everything better baby!!

The starches start to release and mix with the butter-the rice begins to plump up...

See? Looking good!!

When the rice is just about finished, add the peas and cheese...I added some mushrooms too, but you can put whatever you like at this point...

add a bit more butter and stock to simmer and let finish cooking. Rice should have some "bite" and not be mushy...correct seasoning (salt/pepper and fresh herbs if you like)...

and Viola!! "Garden" Risotto!! Top with shredded cheese, a drizzle of olive oil and serve with your favorite wine and some crusty bread...Magnifico!!

This dish is a bit "rustic," but still delicious! Serve as a side or as a main dish..either way you cannot go wrong with this!! I hope you've enjoyed this offering, I know I did! YUM!!

Now time for cake and ice cream, then sweet dreams of hopefully finding my "Paul Child" one day! As Julia would say...."Bon Appetit!!!"