Cherry Risotto

Whenever I visit my parents, my mom asks that I make up some risotto. So, after finishing dinner one night, I asked what kind of risotto the two of them wanted. Since mom had just bought some cherries, I suggested a savory cherry risotto. I figured the challenge of using cherries to make a savory dish would be a fun experiment, and that if I could make it work then it would be a great side for poultry.

Ingredients

4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 tsp rosemary (half for broth, half on cherry/mushrooms)
½ tsp. ground white peppercorns
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp chili powder
1 tsp orange zest
Pinch of nutmeg
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups cherries, seeded and halved
1½  cup sliced mushrooms
pinch of salt 
½ half an onion, cut into slivers 
¾ cup white wine 
1½  cup risotto
½ cup of arugula, chopped finely

Directions

• Place a pot over medium heat.  Pour in broth and add all the spices (1/2 tsp rosemary, thyme, chili, peppercorns, cinnamon, and nutmeg) and orange zest.  Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. 
• In a large pan over medium heat, sauté cherries in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil for 3 minutes.  Then, remove cherries, add three more tablespoons of olive oil and sauté  mushrooms.  When mushrooms are lightly brown, add the cherries back and pour in ¼ cup of white wine.  Sauté for about 5 minutes, or until most of the wine is cooked off.  Remove mushrooms and cherries to a bowl and season with 1/2 tsp of rosemary and a pinch of salt. 

• In the same pan, add 2 tablespoons of butter and add onions.   Cook until brown and wilted (not quite fully caramelized, but close).  Then, add the risotto and stir until the grain is translucent, except for a white dot in the center (about 5 minutes).  Add the 1/2 cup of wine and stir until completely absorbed.  Add a ladleful of stock, stirring continually.  Wait until the stock is completely absorbed before adding another ladleful.  Continue to keep adding broth a ladleful at a time, only adding more once the broth is absorbed.  It should take about 20 minutes or more to get the risotto tender.  
• When the risotto is soft and you have added all but the last ½ cup of broth, add the cherries and mushrooms.  Cover with a lid and let finish over a low heat for about 5 minutes.  When you are ready to serve, add the rest of the broth, a small pad of butter, and top with toasted almonds or goat cheese.   

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Making Colcannon

Last St. Patrick's Day, I posted a recipe on making Colcannon.  Since I'm not much at preparing corned beef, this is still my go-to recipe to celebrate.  It is warm, starchy, and meaty.  I'm including a video for making it below, but you can also check out the original post at http://downhomefoodie.blogspot.com/2011/03/colcannon.html. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Seafood Chowder

Since I had the fish stock on hand, it seemed like the next logical step was to make a Seafood Chowder.  The nice thing about a fish stock base is that it imparts a lot of flavor.  However, you still need some kind of yummy seafood bits to chew on.  The catch is, I am on a pretty tight budget and buying seafood is not really in that budget.  So, a while ago I started stockpiling frozen seafood as it came on sale.  I picked up a large bag of baby scallops for $2.49, used a half of a ring of frozen shrimp, and a bag of seafood mix (octopus, shrimp, and fish) for $2.99.  Since all of it was frozen, after thawing it I soaked everything in milk to get out the fishiness--milk is the best insurance policy for seafood.

Since this was my first time making it, there was more improving, seasoning, and correcting than measuring of ingredients.  I'm going to give you an approximation of what I did--so consider this more of a journey than a recipe.

Ingredients:
3 slices of bacon
1/2 red onion, cut into thin slivers
1 cup mirepoix of carrots, celery, and onions
1 orange (or red or green) pepper, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1-2 tsp. cayenne seasoning
2 tbls. sherry
1 cup white wine
2 large potatoes, cubed and with skin left on
4-5 cups fish stock
3 cups of baby scallops, frozen seafood medley, and shrimp
3 tbls. butter
3 tbls. flour
2 cups milk
additional 1/2 tsp of ground pepper and 1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions

• In a large stock pot, crisp the bacon.  When it is done, remove and drain on a paper towel.  
• In the bacon grease, add the red onions and mirepoix and cook for 2-3 minutes.  Add the orange pepper and cook for another couple of minutes.  When the vegetables are soft, add salt, pepper, and cayenne seasoning. 
• With the sherry and white wine, deglaze the pot.  After cooking off a little of the liquid, add the potatoes and toss in mixture.  Ladle in fish stock so that the potatoes are covered with liquid.  Bring to a boil and cook potatoes until fork tender.  At this point, add the seafood and bring back to a boil.  Then reduce the temperature to a simmer. 
• In another pot, over medium heat melt butter and whisk in flour to make a roux.  Add the milk, pepper, and red pepper flakes, and another little dash of sherry.  Keep stirring until mixture thickens.  
• Once the milk is so thick it coats the back of a spoon, pour into the seafood soup.  Simmer together for about 30 minutes to incorporate all the flavors.  
• Served topped with the crispy bacon, thinly sliced asparagus, and some drops of sriracha.  

Fish Stock

In watching old Julia Child shows, I was inspired by her episode on bouillabaisse. I've never bought or tried straight fish stock, but she made it look so fun.  So, I started hoarding shrimp tails and fish parts in the freezer.  As you can see, I picked up a salmon head from the grocery store: the fish department was about to butcher it and I talked the manager into letting me have the head (at a discount, but not really enough of a discount).   I also picked up a whole tilapia at a different grocery store.  This week, after doing my best to stockpile, I discovered an Asian market in town that sells just fish heads; I'll know for next time.  

At the Asian market, I also picked up lemon grass stalks and some dried, salted fish that have the words "stock fish" on the package.  They are fishy, salty, and a little sour, so they give a little extra flavor.  

Add in carrots, parsley stems, celery, onions, and bay leaves, and what you end up with is something really intriguing.  In chopping up the fish heads and then in the initial 15 minutes of cooking, all you smell is overwhelming fish tang.  It seems unimaginable that something tasty could could come out.  Somehow, after stewing away, you end up with a stock that is fish flavored, but not fishy.  

Ingredients
2 lbs fish parts (heads, skeletons, bones, etc), cut into large pieces
1/2 cup dried fish
1/2 cup shrimp tails (more if you have them)
handful of parsley stems
1 stalk lemon grass, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 stalks of celery, cut into 2 inch pieces
3 carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 garlic clove
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon peppercorns
1-2 tsp. cajun seasoning
2 tsp. salt 
Water to cover (10-12 cups)

Directions

• Place all ingredients in a large stockpot.  Add water until everything is covered.  
• Over medium-high heat, bring water to a boil.
• Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and simmer for 30 minutes.  From what I read, if you cook to long, you end up with bitter stock.
• Remove from heat and let set for 15 minutes or so.  Strain through a fine mesh strainer or a cheese cloth.  If time permits, let cool for an hour or so to get the impurities to the top, then skim that off.  
• This made about two batches, so I used one and froze the other.  

   

PB&J Treats

I love the new Peanut Butter Multi Grain Cheerios.  Since, I also love Rice Krispies Treats, I was confident I could take these two loves and make a pretty sassy dessert.    So I took all my favorite things, peanut butter, peanut butter cheerios, marshmallows, and dried cranberries, and created PB & J Treats.  

Ingredients:

6 cups Peanut Butter Cheerios
4 ½ cups marshmallows
1/2 stick butter
1 cup peanut butter

1 cup dried cranberries

Directions:

• Melt butter, marshmallows, and peanut butter in a pan.  When melted, pour over the cheerios and dried cranberries.  Stir till the melted mixture is thoroughly distributed throughout the cheerios.  Then either press mixture into a greased 13x9x2 pan, or just press out on a flat surface in the form of a rectangle.  Cut into squares and enjoy.  

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Bacon and Chili Oil Chocolate Torte

I really like the idea of chocolate and bacon, but I have had a hard time finding it combined in a way I liked. My first exposure was in the Vosges candy bar.  The idea seemed antithetical yet exciting, but the candy bar just still felt like eating bacon and chocolate--the two just didn't come together.  The bacon didn't compliment the chocolate; the chocolate didn't make the the bacon better. 

I had faith, though, that the two could, and would, come together.  So for Valentine's Day, the day of chocolate and decadent excess, I tried my hand at a union between bacon and chocolate.  My hunch was that it needed a go-between flavor to help bridge the rather large gap between smoky and salty to sweet and creamy.  I kicked around coconut milk, cinnamon, peanut butter (which I still might try at some point).  Finally, I remembered a torte from Paul Gayler's cookbook, The Ultimate Vegetarian Cookbook, that made a chocolate torte with chili oil.  To me, chili oil (like the black pepper in Vosges candy bar) could be a key to bringing bacon and chocolate together because chili/heat is such a compatible flavor to both.  The other thought I had was to help complete the combination of salty, sweet, and spicy, by bringing in a little tart to balance the palate.

And so, the Bacon and Chili Oil Chocolate Torte was born.  

Bacon and Orange Zest Crust
1 cup chocolate wafers crumbs
¼ cup walnuts
4 strips (1/3 cup) bacon, diced
2 tsp. orange zest (about 1 orange)
1 tablespoon grated dark chocolate
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/3 cup salted melted butter
Pinch salt
Pinch red pepper flakes 

Directions:

1. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat.  When it is hot, add the bacon and 1 tbls. of the brown sugar.  Keep the bacon moving around until it is cooked and crispy.  Remove the bacon from the pan and drain on a paper towel.  Then, in the same pan, brown the walnuts (about 5 minutes of stirring continually).
2. In a food processor, add walnuts, cookies, and bacon.  Process until all are in very fine crumbs. 
3. Place the walnuts, cookie and bacon crumbs  in a large mixing bowl.  Add orange zest, grated chocolate, the other tablespoon of brown sugar, butter, salt, and pepper flakes.  Stir until it forms a loose mixture. 
4. Scoop mixture into a 9-in pie pan and mold into a pie crust.  With a fork, make pricks in the crust to allow air to escape.  Place in a 350°F oven and cook for 10 minutes.  Set aside and let cool. 

Chocolate and Chili Oil Filling 
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
10 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp chili oil
Pinch of Himalayan pink salt

Directions

1. In a pot over medium-low heat, bring milk and cream to a gentle simmer.  Then, remove from burner and stir in the chocolate, chili oil, and salt.  When the chocolate is melted, add a little bit of the mixture to a bowl in which you have beaten the eggs.  Keep whisking to keep the eggs from cooking.  Now that the temperature of the eggs is warm, add the egg mixture into the pan with the milk and chocolate.  Keep whisking until the mixture is completely incorporated.
2. Add filling to the chocolate and bacon crumb shell.  Place in a 325°F oven and cook for 15-20 minutes, until chocolate is set. 
3. When the pie is finished cooking, remove from oven and let cool.  Once cool, add some Himalayan pink salt on the top. 

Meatballs in a Bread Bowl

My timing is a little off, but today's post and Wednesday's post are meant to be a Valentine's Day dinner sequence for a special guy in your life.  The "Dried Cranberry and Walnut Encrusted Fish" recipe I developed for Very Good Recipes is a great quick, easy, light Valentine's Day meal.  But, if you are looking for something heartier, today's post is a little more labor intensive and is a meaty-carb fest.

The Meatball recipe comes from Tyler’s Ultimate.  I decreased the amount of meat, substituted a red onion for a white one, added arugula and red pepper flakes, added an extra egg, and substituted feta for mozzarella.  Below is also a red sauce recipe that incorporates the arugula.   

Because I did this on Sunday, I made my own bread bowls (three parts white; one part wheat flour) by using the Tassajara Bread Book recipe I normally use.  After the second rising, I divided the dough into four equal parts and baked them for about 30 minutes.  For this step, you can easily purchase large rolls in the store. 

Ingredients

Extra-virgin olive oil

½ red onion, finely diced

1 garlic clove., diced

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

½ cup arugula, chopped

1 cup milk

4 slices of stale bread, crumbled up in small pieces

1 lb ground pork

1 lb ground beef

2 large eggs

½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

½ cup of feta

1 tsp salt

½ tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup red wine 

olive oil

½ red onion, finely diced 

Any leftover meatballs that broke apart during browning

2 tablespoon parsley

½ cup shredded arugula 

½ cup red wine 

1 28-oz can of plum tomatoes in liquid 

2 tbls. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

pinch cayenne pepper

Directions:

• Drizzle some olive oil into a medium-sized pan over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes.   Then, add the arugula and parsley, sauteing until the greens are wilted.  Set aside to cool. 
• While the mixture is cooling, put the milk and stale bread in a bowl to let the bread soak. 
• In a large bowl, mix together pork, beef, eggs, cheeses, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. When cool, add the onion and arugula mixture.  Then, with your hand, squeeze the milk out of the stale bread.  Add the bread to the meat.  Blend everything together with a spoon or your hands to get all the ingredients distributed. 
• With an ice-cream scoop, scoop the meat into round balls.  Set the molded meatballs on plate.  
• Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet.  Add half of the meatballs and brown.  This will take a couple of minutes on each side.  When the meatballs are brown, remove to an ovenproof dish.  Brown the second batch and add to the ovenproof pan.
• Add 1/2 cup wine to the meatballs to give them some liquid to cook in.  Then, place the pan of meatballs in a 350°F oven and cook for about 15-20 minutes. 

• While the meatballs are baking, in a medium pot over medium-high heat drizzle some olive oil.  Saute the onions until brown. Then, add any meat from meatballs that broke apart (I was using a cast iron skillet, so I lost about three meatballs to sticking).  Cook the meat until brown.  Next, toss in parsley and arugula and cook until wilted. 
• Pour in the red wine to de-glaze the brown bits from the bottom of the pot.  Once you have all the brown bits up, add the tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper flakes.  
• When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cover with the lid.  Cook until the meatballs are finished baking in the oven.  Then, with a hand wand, puree the tomatoes. Turn off the heat under the sauce. 
• Add the meatballs into the tomato sauce.  Let set a couple of minutes, then spoon meatballs and sauce into the hollowed out bread bowls.