Category: Musings

Okay, confession number two. 
I’m comfort eating… and drinking. I’m still pretty good about keeping to my routines in the morning, but by noon, I’m starting to crack. My healthful thoughts are surrounded by the stress and tension that has built all morning, and all I want to do is break down for a large double caff mocha and pumpkin bread, or a maple scone, or lemon pound cake – you get the drift. 
So, we’ve been focusing on comfort foods for dinner the past couple of nights. 
Two nights ago, my honey, sometimes called D in these musings, made me a macrobiotic comfort feast of tofu, seaweed, noodles and bok choy. 
I know. That is NOT your idea of comfort food and you do not have 3 kinds of miso around. We have talked about how much of a geek I am, right? 

We’ll pass on recipes for that meal but let me just say, it was perfect for what I needed. The sense memories and sense of fullness I get from those meals can carry me for days. What meal creates that for you? Whatever it is, put it on your menu plan.
Then last night, we had farmers market things to eat. We first said soup because there is little better than soup to soothe the soul, but I wanted something more “toothy” so we went with Risotto paired with a lovely Chicory Blossom Mead from Heidrun

When Risotto is fabulous, the rice is creamy, and it warms you from head to toe. 
It’s not the easiest of meals because it is all “a-la-minute” – in other words, cook it now and serve it immediately – you have to be prepped, but the prep is easy and malleable to what you have on hand. You can have it done in an hour. 

To make risotto, you need to have stock of some sort. I’m not a fan of canned chicken broth, but that’ll do. So will tetra pack vegetable broth, or you can make your own if you have an extra chicken or some vegetable ends lying around. In fact, you might want to make a note to save the pieces of vegetables you don’t eat. Before composting, fresh ends of carrots, celery, onions and just about anything else can make a nice flavorful vegetable stock that you can use as a base for soup, stew, risotto, flavor for pasta, you name it. 
Besides the stock, you need rice. And yes, ALMOST any rice will do, preferably SHORT GRAIN (D is cringing as he reads that part) but it is best if you have RISOTTO rice – also called Carnaroli or Arborio (likely not as IN DEMAND as some rice this month, so perhaps on the shelves? or maybe you have some in your pantry and haven’t known what to do with it!)
Onions are an essential pantry item and if kept correctly, last a long, long time. You’ll need at least half of one for this. 
You also need some butter or oil for the pan so things don’t stick. 
Last necessity is cheese – parmesan. And if you are still buying it in that green jar, just STOP. Seriously. Real blocks of parmesan or Gran Padano can be bought and stored for months if not years and are so much better for you. Invest in one and a grater if you don’t have it and let’s get going. 
Okay, so everyone that cooks risotto has (gasp!) opinions on how to do it. This is not about the perfect risotto, this is about a comforting food for you and the fam and whoever else is stuck at your home with you.

Here are the basics:
Ingredient Checklist: 
Rice (Risotto-style, short-grain regular in a pinch)
Stock (canned, boxed or freshly made)
Onion
Fat (Butter or Oil)
Cheese (Parmesan or something similar)
Add-ins can be small chopped vegetables, shrimp, bacon, (the list is endless, pick something with umami (like mushrooms) and something bright (like asparagus or lemon) for a nice flavor combo)Wine is a great flavor for risotto – something white and crisp like a Sauvignon Blanc would be good and can be substituted for some of the stock

Whatever feels good Risotto
Serves 4 (split in half for 2, also great for leftovers)
Time: Takes about 1 hour ACTIVE kitchen time
Contains dairy products (marked with (D) for dairy)

Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow or white onion
2 cups risotto rice
5 cups stock (vegetable or animal) – 1 cup can be substituted with wine
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 c parmesan cheese (D)

Add in whatever vegetables and / or proteins you would like. Cut them up, blanch or steam them, roast them, whichever. Just have them ready to mix in at the end.

Equipment
4 qt saucepan
2 qt or larger saucepan
ladle
large kitchen spoon
cheese grater

Instructions:
Peel and finely chop the onion. Heat the oil in a 4 qt saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring continuously, until it turns soft and translucent. Turn the heat down if the onion starts browning. 
In second saucepan, heat the stock over medium heat until it is simmering. Adjust heat so that you maintain this simmer the entire time you are making risotto. 
Once the onion is soft, splash a little wine or stock into the pan and loosen all the remnants at the bottom of the pan. Then add the rice. Stir it gently for 3 minutes to warm the rice. Turn heat down if needed, don’t let the rice brown. 
Using your ladle, transfer about 1/2 cup of stock to the pan with onions. Continue stirring constantly. It should look soupy. As you continue to stir, make sure you scrape the bottom of the pan. The rice will absorb the stock and start to become dry. You will see little bubbles in the liquid between grains of rice. Gently bubbling is good. If it’s too vigorous, turn the heat down. 
As the rice is obviously dry, add another ladle of stock. Stir constantly. Take turns stirring, but DON’T STOP. And as the rice dries, add another ladle of stock. ladle of broth to the pan and stir constantly, as before.
Continue to add stock one ladle at a time, stirring, until you’ve used most of the stock. (About 20 minutes) [NOTE: if you are using wine, use htat in the middle here. It’s not about the alcohol, so don’t worry about it burning off.
Test the rice is cooked by tasting a grain. Scoop up one with a spoon and bite the grain, is it crunchy? Still too raw. Keep ladling. If you run out of broth, use hot water.
Is it tender? Nice. You’re on track. Add in your add-ins now (perhaps a bit sooner if they need a bit of cooking). When the rice is tender and the risotto has a creamy consistency, it is done. Season it with the salt and pepper, about 1/4 tsp (of each) at a time ’til you find the right mix. Add the grated cheese and stir well. Serve the risotto immediately into warm bowls. Have extra grated Parmesan on hand.

Other Risotto recipes I like:
https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/rice-recipes/risotto-bianco-white-risotto/
https://www.nigella.com/recipes/lemon-risotto