Risotto Milanese (Saffron Risotto)

Joe taught me how to cook risotto, which is a much different technique than cooking rice. You put rice and water and seasonings into a pan and simmer it for 20 minutes or so, then fluff it up at the end. Risotto is cooked with small amounts of liquid stirred in here and there while the short fat grains become tender and creamy in the sauce.

This risotto with saffron (ground or in threads) is perhaps the most classic preparation. I intended to look up the reason why this recipe is called Milan-style and why it uses saffron and onion together. But Thursday I had a photo shoot on Chicago L trains and a French small plates cooking demonstration.

Commuter on the Skokie Swift

L train pulling into the Merchandise Mart stop

Waiting for the L, Chicago

Train platform stairs, Chicago

This weekend we cooked Thanksgiving casseroles to freeze for a busy holiday week, then made pretzel bread and cheddar-beer fondue soup (recipe to come). Sunday we were at church all morning, attended a meet & greet with our new pastor and had a long worship band rehearsal, then created a slide show of charities we helped for the Thrivent Chapter Board annual dinner that night, and came home late.

I'm not complaining a bit. I love this kind of busy - the kind with lots of good food and great company and a long rainy Saturday cooking companionably with my love. Actually, we're lucky this recipe was written this weekend at all. I bet the Milanese would love the risotto Joe cooked Friday night, though I still don't know why they prepare it this way.

Ingredients

3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup onion, minced
6 cups hot chicken broth
2 cups Arborio rice
1/4 tsp ground saffron
1 cup grated Romano cheese
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Directions

Melt together the butter and oil at medium heat in a large saucepan. Add the onion and salt and saute until tender. Add the rice and saute until white and covered with oil, about 2 minutes.

Slowly stir in 1/2 cup broth, allowing the rice to start to absorb the broth and thicken it. Stir in the saffron.
Continue adding the hot broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until the broth thickens before adding the next 1/2 cup. After 5 1/2 cups of broth are absorbed by the rice, taste for tenderness. If rice is still hard, continue stirring and add the rest of the liquid. The risotto is ready when the grains are tender on the outside with a small firm al dente core.

When the rice is ready, stir in half the Romano cheese and the parsley. Divide into 6 portions and top with the remaining cheese.

Serves 6.

Read more...

Mushroom and Pine Nut Wild Rice Pilaf

The first time I remember having wild rice was when I was visiting family in Minnesota at Christmastime. A snowstorm delayed our trip back to the airport, and I ran to the gate with my little girls panting to keep up, just to meet a closed door and an apologetic flight attendant telling us she was sorry about our missed flight, in that cute Fargo-type accent.

Jenny burst into tears.

The sweet little attendant looked stricken. She booked us on the next flight and upgraded us to first class. We spent the next couple of hours strolling through the airport shops, where we discovered the deliciousness of Caribou coffee and I learned about the cultivation and harvesting of wild rice, the seeds that Native Americans have so generously offered the world. Minnesota is very proud of its wild rice.

Wild rice seems to be a natural pair-up with poultry or fish, so I served this easy rice pilaf with Alaskan pollock baked in white wine, salad burnet, and dill. If you don't have pine nuts, the buttery-sweet flavor of pecans is a good substitute.

Ingredients

1 cup mixed wild rice and brown rice

1 tbsp oil

1/2 cup chopped white onion

1 1/2 cups chopped mushrooms

1 tsp chopped rosemary

2 cups chicken broth

Directions

Toast the rice in a dry skillet until some of the grains are browner. Set the rice aside. Heat the oil in the skillet, then add the mushrooms and onions and brown them on medium-high heat. Stir frequently so they do not burn.

Add the rosemary and chicken broth, then stir in the rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cover the pan. Simmer for 40-45 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed and the grains are tender and chewy. 

Toast the pine nuts in a small pan until they are slightly browned. Don't toast them too much, or they will taste bitter. Sprinkle the nuts on top of the rice before serving.

Makes 4-6 side dishes.

Read more...

5 Fabulous Meatless Meals

The Hungry Lovers have been looking for meatless Monday inspiration, especially since we're in the glorious days of summer garden bounty. This summer in particular, the produce seems more abundant and luscious than many years. This is a perfect time of year to explore new vegetarian meals.

I've rounded up some tasty meat-free meals for you to try, from some food sites we enjoy reading. If you'd like, please share with us your favorite meatless dishes, too. We always love trying something new.

Capasso Kitchen, Broccoli with carrots and cashews. We love a stir fry. We REALLY love cashews.

Honey B's and Birch Trees, Spicy Black Bean Burgers. "Spicy" and "Black Bean". Two of our favorite food words.

Bon Appetempt, Almond Tofu with Snap Peas and Soba Noodles. I bet this is fabulous with peanut butter, too.

The Reluctant Bean, Barbecue Lentil Sandwiches. You know they're good when teenagers are wolfing them down.

LaaLoosh, Lemon Spinach Chickpea Pasta. Laaloosh creates dependably awesome recipes that are healthy and Weight Watchers-friendly. 

Read more...

Paella (Saffron Rice with Chicken and Seafood)

Joe and I have talked about making this signature dish from Spain for a long time, but paella always seemed so daunting. I mean, the list of ingredients is huge, and the explanations for preparing all the seafood seemed like too much bother. And then there's the special paella pan, a wide shallow skillet that traditionally Spaniards used over an open fire.

Our Spain/Portugal cookbook has two pages of directions for this recipe, but it also told us we were overthinking the whole dish. At its heart, the recipe for paella is basically a rice stew with seafood, vegetables, and meat, and cooks probably threw in whatever they had at home or whatever was fresh or on sale. The cookbook has a photo of a family cooking this over a little bonfire in a park, and then eating it straight out of the pan.

So here's our recipe. I'm not going to get all Julia Child on you and describe how to cook a live lobster or scrub the beards off mussels. Choose the things you like or look good at the store, then be sure to savor each one of the flavors and scents as you cook the stew - it really is an experience! Next time you make it, the mix will probably be completely different.

P.S. This makes a big pot of paella. It's perfect for a bunch of friends. If you get each of them to chop one ingredient, it will all come together quickly.

Ingredients

2 lbs meat: cut-up chicken pieces, serrano ham, hard garlicky sausage such as andouille, salami or Spanish chorizo, bacon, boneless pork

2 lbs. seafood: raw shrimp, lobster, clams, mussels, snails, crawfish, calamari, crab claws, and cubes of firm-fleshed fish

4 cups vegetables: peas, sweet pepper strips, hot peppers, garlic, chopped onion, chopped tomatoes, and green beans

1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1 tsp ground saffron or turmeric
1 tbsp hot paprika
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 bay leaves, crumbled
6 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups short-grain Spanish rice
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

In a big, shallow pan, brown the fresh meat in half the oil, then set aside on a warm platter. Saute the vegetables in the remaining oil. Prepare the shellfish as needed, then add to the sauteing vegetables. Cook 3 minutes, then remove all to the platter with the chicken; keep warm.

Heat the broth with the wine, saffron and paprika. Bring to a boil, then keep it hot until ready to use. Heat the oven to 325 degrees.

Saute the rice with the remainder of the oil so that it's coated and slightly browned. Pour in the broth, bay leaves, and parsley. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, then add the vegetables, meat, and seafood, pressing the large pieces into the rice.

Place the skillet in a 325 degree oven, uncovered, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, cover with foil, and let sit for 10 minutes or so, until the rice absorbs all the liquid and is fluffy and tender. Squeeze the lemon wedges over the rice before serving.

Serves 6-8.

Read more...

Minnesota Cream of Turkey & Wild Rice Soup

I think this is one of the best ways we've ever used up leftover Thanksgiving turkey. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a fan of moist white meat on soft white bread, mayo, and a little lettuce for some color. Joe's not giving up his Moist-Maker Thanksgiving sandwich, in which there's an extra piece of bread in the middle soaked in gravy. But this. Oh, I like this a lot.

This recipe started out as a classic Minnesota turkey & wild rice soup from my niece Jackie in Minnesota. That state is the biggest producer of both turkeys and wild rice, which has to be harvested by hand. In Minnesota, Native Americans harvest the rice, and it doesn't sound easy.

Along the research path Joe and I also stopped for a discussion on the brilliant Campbell's Soup Company campaign in the 60s and 70s, where they promoted recipes using their cream soup. Who doesn't remember a casserole or hot dish* that used cream of mushroom soup? The funny thing is, Jackie's husband is in charge of the Progresso Soup line. Maybe someday they'll trademark her recipe.

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil

1 large onion, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

2 peeled carrots, diced

3 cups cooked turkey, diced

4 cups chicken, turkey, or vegetable broth

2 cans cream of chicken soup (we used the low-sodium, low fat kind)

1 can cream of mushroom soup
10 oz. Velveeta cheese, cubed (we used the reduced-fat kind)
1 cup cooked wild rice (or more, depending on your taste)

Instructions

Saute the vegetables in the oil until tender. Pour in the broth. Stir in the turkey, wild rice, and soup. Slowly stir in the cheese until melted, and heat until thick and bubbly.

Serves 4-6.

* Click here to learn more about Midwestern food and cream soups - interesting!

Read more...

Coconut Basmati Rice

This coconut rice dish is deceptively simple - only 5 ingredients, and 20 minutes to prepare! It's also subtly flavored by the basmati rice and creamy coconut milk. Adjust the amount of jalapeno pepper to your taste, or leave it out completely if you prefer. We like this side dish with grilled fish, but it's pretty versatile side for other meals.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups basmati rice

1 13.5 oz can low fat coconut milk

1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 tbsp Thai birds-eye or jalapeno pepper, minced

3 stalks green onions, chopped

Directions

Rinse and drain the rice until the water runs clear - washing off the surface starch helps prevent the rice from getting sticky or gummy.

Add all ingredients to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and let it simmer for 17-20 minutes, until the rice is just tender and fluffy. 

Makes 4-6 servings.

Read more...

Replay: Hazelnut-Asparagus Risotto

This risotto is so good I had to replay it again. I'm in perfect agreement with the 'eat local' movement, but at the same time I'm thankful we live in an era where we can get asparagus out of season when we're really craving it. So here's what I wrote back in June 2012:

So sad that the fresh asparagus season is almost over for the year. We just received two gifts of fresh asparagus in the last week: some came from my dear friend Ardy, and a big bundle came from my mom's garden in Ohio. Risotto was on our minds, slowly stirred into creaminess.

This recipe from Bocca Cookbook, by Jacob Kennedy, made a perfect meatless Monday main dish. It would be just as good as a side dish. We found our shelled hazelnuts (also called filberts) in the baking section and were pleased - whole hazelnuts look hard to crack.

The bright and slightly crunchy asparagus was a revelation paired with the earthy hazelnuts. We were too hungry to fully appreciate the combination at first, but once we slowed down and savored the flavors, it was exquisite.

I think I say food is exquisite too often, but my goodness, this is tasty, even if your friend didn't just snap off the last of her asparagus right out of her backyard for you.

Ingredients

½ medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup arborio rice
2/3 cup white wine
1 1/4 cups water
1 large bunch (3/4 pound) thin asparagus, cut into 1-inch sections
1/3 cup Gorgonzola, crumbled
½ cup shelled hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Directions

Melt the oil and butter together in a large saucepan. Saute the onion until tender. Add the rice and salt and cook for two minutes. Add the wine and 1/2 cup water and bring to a simmer. Continue stirring and simmering and add the rest of the water in small batches as the arborio rice absorbs it - about 20 minutes total.

When the rice is just a little too al dente, sprinkle in the cheese and stir until it is the texture that you like. Serve sprinkled with the rest of the cheese and the hazelnuts.

Makes 2-3 main dishes, or 4-5 side dishes.

Read more...

Yellow Rice with Pigeon Peas (Arroz con Gandules)

A few years ago, we took a group of suburban teenagers on a mission trip to Puerto Rico to help fix houses, take care of children, and share our faith with the people we met. Our teens were wonderfully hard workers who also tried to speak a bit of the language (though they also tried to just add "o" to the end of English words to make them Spanish!).

Once in a while the teens tried out the Puerto Rican dishes that were outside their comfort zone. One night we traveled from the little town of Hormigueros to a beach on the south side of the island. After swimming until sunset in a pretty little cove, we had dinner at a busy local restaurant. Arroz con gandules (say a-ROSE cone gon-doo-lays) was one of the side dishes. It was hearty, savory, and flavorful without being spicy-hot. We ate it all up.

La Casita restaurant in La Parguera, PR

(My dinner is in the tower at the bottom left - mofongo with shrimp. I can't wait to make this for you! Come over, we'll eat, we'll talk...!)

Joe and I bought a cookbook when we were in the Caribbean so we could make some of these dishes at home. Rice with pigeon peas is an inexpensive and filling dinner for a Meatless Monday, or a nice side dish with any kind of Latin American main dish. If you're not making a vegetarian version, it's traditional to stir in chopped sausage, ham or bacon.

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup onion, sliced
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups long grain white rice
4 cups water
5 green Spanish olives, pitted and chopped
1 can green pigeon peas, drained
1 tbsp annato oil or 1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the onion, pepper, garlic, and cilantro and saute until tender (if you're using meat, saute it with the vegetables).

Place all ingredients into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes on medium heat, or until rice is cooked.

Serves 2-4.

Read more...

Pork and Tangerine Stir-Fry

I don't know why pork tastes so good in fruit-based sauces and dishes, but it certainly does. Ripe tangerines or those clementine "cuties", along with aromatic Chinese five-spice powder, make a luscious Christmas-tinged meal.

Ingredients

1 lb pork tenderloin, but into 1-inch cubes

1 tsp canola or grapeseed oil

1/3 cup red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1 tbsp fresh grated ginger

 3 tangerines or clementines, peeled and pulled into sections

1 tsp cornstarch whisked into 1 tsp warm water

2 tbsp Asian sesame oil, divided

1/4 cup Asian sweet chili sauce (we like Mae Ploy brand)

2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

6 baby bok choy, hard bases removed, and cut into 1" diagonal strips

5 green onions, thinly sliced on a diagonal, divided

White or brown rice for serving

Directions

Heat the oil  in a wok or large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Toss in the pork and stir-fry until browned on all sides, 3-5 minutes. Remove the meat.

Add the pepper, ginger, and clementines to the wok and stir-fry until slightly tender, about 3-5 minutes. Return the meat to the pan. Stir together the cornstarch, sesame oil, chili sauce, soy, and five-spice powder and pour into the pan. Add the bok choy and half the green onions and toss and cook until the bok choy is slightly wilted. Transfer to a serving dish, sprinkle with the rest of the green onions, and serve with rice on the side.

Serves 4-6.

Read more...

Vegetarian Saffron Rice (Pulao) with Yogurt-Cucumber Sauce (Raita)

Bottom left: Raita; bottom right: Vegan Pulao

There's something so social and intimate about cooking; besides cooking for friends, our favorite thing to do is cook with friends. When you ask someone to show you how to make their favorite recipes, their stories and memories come tumbling out while the flavors and smells rise through the kitchen.

This is a LOT of rice.

When my friend Sheilja offered to teach me some of the traditional recipes of Northern India, I couldn't wait to get started! She told me about growing up in the northeastern coastal city of Calcutta (Kolkata), the fishing-boat smells and the way her mother used food for healing the family as well as nourishing them.

When you make these low-fat and fiber-rich recipes, just know that they are bursting with health and flavor. Cardamom helps digestion and is packed with vitamins and antioxidants. Saffron, cinnamon, and turmeric are anti-inflammatory ingredients good for people with arthritis and heart disease. Turmeric also works to prevent Alzheimer's disease. Cumin, which they call jeera, has been proven to aid digestion, boost the immune system, and help cure insomnia. No wonder we wanted to take a nap after cooking and eating all this great food.

The fragrant and flavorful rice is wonderful topped with cool and tart cucumber salad. Saffron can be very expensive, but Sheilja tells me that turmeric is an acceptable substitute though the flavor is different. For the Raita, we used black salt; it is a potent salt with the flavor of hard-boiled egg yolks and adds an interesting touch.

Make sure you take out all the cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks before serving.

Ingredients

For the Pulao

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

1 medium white onion, chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp mustard seed

2 cups cut-up mixed vegetables, or 12 oz. frozen mixed vegetables

2 black cardamom pods

2 cinnamon sticks about 2" long

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 green chiles, thinly sliced
3 cups rice

1/2 tsp saffron threads, or 1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp garam masala

½ tsp red chile powder

6 cups water

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

For the Raita Sauce

1 1/2 cups Greek-style plain yogurt
1 cup shredded cucumber
2 tbsp chopped cilantro or mint leaves
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp black salt (or 2 tsp white salt)

Stir together all ingredients and keep cool until ready to serve.

Directions

In a large pot, heat 1 tbsp of the oil. Add the cumin, mustard seed, and onion and saute until the onion is translucent. Add the vegetables, cardamom, cinnamon, garlic, and chiles and cook for 5 minutes.

Wash the rice until the water runs clear, then let it drain. Pour the second tbsp of oil into the pot and add rice. Saute until the rice is beginning to look golden. Add the saffron or turmeric, garam masala, chile powder, and water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Serve topped with cilantro and raita.

Read more...

Vegetable Fried Rice

One of the best things about fried rice is that it's one of those dishes you can throw together using whatever leftovers are in your fridge. When Meatless Monday rolled around, I found a container of cooked green beans, a couple of ears of grilled corn, some broccoli that was nearly past its prime, a limp green onion, and half a red pepper. In the spirit of reducing our meat intake and being thrifty with our food budget, we whipped together a fairly hearty dinner. Use any vegetables that strike your fancy when making your own version; surely this is one of the reasons fried rice was created!

Ingredients

2 cups white or brown rice

4 cups water

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 carrot, peeled and chopped

1/2 cup broccoli, cut into small florets

1/2 medium red bell pepper, diced

1/2 cup green beans, sliced

1 green onion, chopped

1/2 cup corn

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp sesame oil

1/3 cup soy sauce

3 tbsp chili garlic sauce

2 tbsp honey

1/4 cup chicken broth

Directions

Pour water and rice into a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 20 minutes for white rice or 40 minutes for brown rice.

Heat oil in a wok until it shimmers. Add carrots and broccoli and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add pepper, beans, onion, corn, and garlic, and fry an additional five minutes, or until crisp-tender. Stir in rice, cover, and reduce heat to low.

Whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour over rice and mix well. Heat through before serving.

Serves 4.

Read more...