Household Blog

I love risotto, and beyond the obvious loving to eat risotto, I love to make risotto. Let me be clear: making risotto is not hard, but it takes a long time. It is a labor of love. If you cringe at the idea of standing in front of a stove for an hour or so, this recipe is not for you.

If you’re like me, however, and the thought of sauteing mushrooms, stirring slowly in mindful meditation, sipping on a glass of red wine, breathing in the rich scent of slow-cooked butter and the forest floor, this is for you. Put on some good music (we played Sigur Ros this time, and I’ve enjoyed Over the Rhine in the past, but any warm mellow music will work), prep all your ingredients, pour yourself a glass, and get cooking.

Making risotto is not a chore that we have to do sometimes. Making risotto is something we get to do, when we have the time, when we have the right mindset. It’s a little mini-vacation in the kitchen. A labor of love.

NOTES: Homemade broth is best (vegetable, chicken, lamb—oh lamb would be great!). I make my broth in big batches and then freeze it for future use. If you’re doing this, be sure to thaw it and bring it to room temperature before using, and I find it helpful to have my stock close by in a quart jar for easy measuring. Also, yes, butter is necessary—accept no substitutions. And finally, most risotto recipes call for arborio rice. I personally love using brown rice, have also made it with red rice, a wild rice blend, and quinoa. You might want to follow the recipe straight the first time till you get the hang of it, but after that, feel free to experiment! Plus then you can play with the name—quinotto, milletto, etc. (I haven’t tried this yet with millet, but I would love to! I also wonder if oat groats might hold up to it… if you try it, let me know how it goes!)

Mushroom Risotto

• 6 Tbsp butter, divided
• 14 oz. fresh crimini mushrooms (or your favorite fungus), sliced
• 2 4-inch sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 small onion or half a large onion, diced
• 1 1/2 c. long grain brown rice
• 1/2 c. red wine (see, some of it even makes it into the food!)
• 4 c. good-quality stock  (I use chicken)
• 1/2 c. parmesan
• salt and pepper to taste

Prep all ingredients in advance—you will thank yourself later while you placidly stir, humming along with your music of choice. If you don’t prep, you will not enjoy the process quite as much :)

Heat a broad-bottomed deep skillet over medium. When it is hot, add 4 Tbsp of the butter and melt. Add the mushrooms, stirring constantly, about 8 minutes. At first they’ll soak up all the liquid, but then as they cook the juices will come out and become nice and brown and bubbly and smells oh-so-good… Use a slotted spoon to remove the mushrooms from the pan, leaving the juice. Set mushrooms aside.

Add to the skillet the remaining 2 Tbsp butter, then the garlic, onion, and rosemary. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes till the onion is softened and starting to turn translucent. Add the rice and stir, coating it with the butter, for 2 or 3 minutes—the rice will become shiny and semi-translucent. Add the mushrooms back in, and add the wine. Stir to combine.

Add 1/2 cup of broth at a time, each time waiting until the prior addition has been mostly absorbed before added more. Stir constantly. This will take a while. Settle in, relax, enjoy it. Continue adding and stirring until the rice is just softened but still has a touch of firmness to it  (Snoopy said, “It ain’t over till Al says ‘Dente!’”). This was at exactly four cups of stock for me, but if it takes less, it takes less. If you need more liquid, add more water from a teapot or wine or stock if you have it on hand. You get the picture.

Once the risotto is just about done, remove the rosemary sprigs, then stir in the parmesan. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper (I don’t think I’ve ever had to add salt, but fresh ground pepper is great). Garnish with grated parm and maybe some fresh parsley.

Serves 4 as a main course, 6 to 8 as a side dish.

What’s your favorite risotto combination? brainstorms? favorite moody cooking music?

From our new Purple House contributor, Damon:

As anyone who’s spent any amount of time at the Purple House knows, food is pretty important around here. My knowledge and passion for food has increased dramatically since being introduced to it. Not only does this serve as my first post to the PH Blog, but it is also my first post to any blog whatsoever. I’m honored to have the chance to cut my teeth on behalf of a home and its inhabitants whom I love so greatly.

As promised, here’s an old stuffed pepper recipe of mine that’s undergone some modifications since joining the Purple House. Most any of the ingredients can be substituted—meat can be added, grains or herbs substituted, different cheeses used, etc. This recipe is just a framework from a recently successful batch. Look around at what you have on hand and what’s in season and
experiment!

Stuffed Peppers

• 4 bell peppers
• 1/2 cup dry rice, soaked and/or sprouted, then cooked
• 2 medium tomatoes
• 8 oz feta
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• fresh herbs to taste: marjoram, thyme, rosemary, you choose
• salt
• parmesan

Prepare the sprouted rice first by cooking it while prepping the stuffing. Dice tomatoes and place in a large bowl. Add salt to taste. Coarsely chop about your fresh herbs—I used 1/4 cup fresh marjoram, 1/4 cup fresh thyme, a tablespoon of fresh rosemary. Crumble the feta cheese and add it and the herbs to the tomatoes. Toast sunflower seeds till golden brown and add to tomato mixture, combine, and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375. Choose 4 peppers that stand upright nicely and have large bodies, wash them, and cut out their tops. Shake out the seeds and remove ribbing on the inside carefully with your fingers or a spoon.

Add the cooked rice to the tomato mixture and combine. Don’t be worried if the rice is still a bit hard—it will cook further in the oven. Use a spoon fill each pepper to overflowing and top it with a sprinkle of shredded parmesan. (Any extra stuffing goes great in omelets!)

Place peppers in the casserole dish and add 1/2 inch water to the bottom of the dish. Bake for about 1 hour or until the peppers are just barely starting to brown and wilt slightly. Consider a side of steamed greens and a piece of cheesecake for dessert. Dern tasty…

Credit for this simple epitome-of-summer recipe goes to my wonderful grandparents, Buddy and Marie. For as long as I can remember, this (along with their recipe for tomato pie) has been the ultimate summer meal. Fresh in-season ingredients brought in still warm from the garden, chopped, mixed, et voila: perfection. Serve with some fresh corn on the side, and it truly is the quintessential summertime meal. For me anyway. And the amounts are not specific—sorry—the measurements are just sort of till-it-looks/tastes-right.

Tomato Basil Pasta

• Tinkyada gluten free spaghetti or fettucini pasta
• 2 cloves garlic
• sea salt
• 2 or 3 large fresh tomatoes or the equivalent amount of grape or cherry tomatoes, coarsely chopped into bite-sized pieces
• a couple handfuls of fresh basil, coarsely chopped
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• Parmesan for garnish, optional

Smash and peel garlic cloves, and put the whole smashed cloves in the bottom of a mixing bowl. Mix in enough sea salt to coat the garlic and press garlic into the salt. Add tomatoes, basil, a drizzle of olive oil (not too much, just a tablespoon or so, max), and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside at room temperature to let the flavors develop.

Cook your pasta per usual and drain, then immediately toss pasta with the tomato mixture. Serve, garnishing with parmesan, if desired. That’s it!

What’s your favorite summertime dish?