Last night I had the pleasure of cooking for my lovely friend Brooke. We both really love the book The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone so I thought it appropriate to make something from there. I haven't made THAT many recipes from her book so perf! I chose the Risotto with Oyster Mushrooms, Leeks, and Peas as I've never made a risotto from scratch before. I've only made a box one (gasp!). Lol
Risotto with Oyster Mushrooms, Leeks, and Peas
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
3/4-1 cup oyster mushrooms, or 1 cup button mushrooms, sliced
2 pinches sea salt
1/2 cup thinly sliced leeks
1/2 cup fresh or thawed peas
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4-1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup mirin or white wine
Directions
Bring 5 cups of water just to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a skillet. Add the mushrooms and a pinch of salt and stir until the mushrooms soften. Add the leeks and a pinch of salt and saute for 1 minutes, or until the leeks soften. Add some water to the pan, 1 tablespoon at a time if the vegetables become dry or start to stick to the pan.
If you are using fresh peas, blanch them for 1 minutes in a small pot of boiling water, and then add them to the sauteed vegetables. If using thawed just add them. Remove from heat and set aside.
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a medium skillet over m edium heat. Add the garlic and onion and, when the onions begins to sizzle, add a dash of salt. Saute until the onions soften, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stif in the rice and toast the grains until they are opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the wine and cook until it has evaporated. Reduce the heat to medium low and begin add the warm water by ladelfuls, stirring it into the risotto, and adding more liquid only when the previous addition has been absorbed. After the rice has cooked for 20 minutes, seas to taste with salt. The total cooking time should be 25 to 30 minutes. The risotto will be creamy, but the rice should retain some firmness.
Add the sauteed vegetable mixture to the risotto and stir together until hot. Serve warm.
Ok, so that's the recipe the way its presented in the book. I, of course, have made some changes, like I always do. The changes are:
1. I did not use oyster mushrooms as they weren't available so I used 4 button mushrooms and 1 portobello.
2. I used an entire leek, except the green part.
3. I added 1 tsp of chili flakes, 1 tsp of garlic powder, 1/2 freshly squeezed lemon and a total of 1.5 tsp salt.
4. Instead of peas, I used edamame (frozen).
5. I used grapeseed oil instead of olive oil.
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| Steamed Kale and broccoli w/ lemon and Gomashio |
This dish turned out amazing. It is so rich and creamy, surprisingly creamy. Even though there isn't butter or cream in it. I really like this recipe a lot. I served it on top of steamed veggies which I tossed in 1/2 lemon and a tsp of Gomashio.
PS: Gomashio is a Japanese seasoning of sea salt and sesame seeds. You can check it out here. Its great and a nice way to season food with a good dose of calcium (from the sesame seeds).
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| Mmmmmmmm |
I did really enjoy this recipe and making a risotto was not as labour intensive as I initially though. I would change a few things in the prep side to make it a bit easier and way less dishes to wash. I don't know about you but washing dishes isn't my fave thing to do and its certainly not eco friendly to have to wash so many. Not saving any water here folks.
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| Thank you Kind Diet |
Firstly, I would just use warm water, not boiled water. Save one pot. Second (which I did), I would not use one pan for doing the veggies and one for the garlic and onions. I did the veggies, then put them in a bowl to the side. And thirdly, I would make more because we ate it all! There were no leftovers and I was sad. Lol Seriously, it says serves 4 or 5. I guess its assuming you're making something else or you're not a pig like me and Brooke are. I really don't understand how 4 or 5 people could get full off this dish. Next time I will double the recipe so I have some for lunch the next day. There's no way 1 cup of any kind of rice could be enough for 4 to 5 people. You're speaking to an Asian here, we're passionate about our rice. HA.
Yummy Yummy Yummy! I'm stoked that my first attempt at risotto went over well. Brookey said it was delish. Next time I'm going to add asparagus and who knows what else. But risotto will be happening again in my house.
I gotta start my Christmas shopping/assembling this weekend but its going to be SO busy! Ahhh, it always gets so crazy before Christmas. I have plans till Christmas every night but maybe 2. Lol 2 concerts this weekend, a few friends from Victoria in town, getting an iphone! Wha wha! Prince and Jay Z and Kanye this weekend. I might pee. Lol
Peace
xoxo
K
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