Category: Risotto
Let’s Talk Risotto
| November 18, 2010 | Filled under Reviews, Risotto |
If you’ve hung out around this blog for a while, you know that risotto is a staple in our house. You might even says it’s my thing. In fact, when I was asked to bring a gift that represented my blog to the Foodbuzz Festival I brought a risotto kit.
So when Marx Foods was looking for people to test and review four different kinds of risotto rice, I jumped on the opportunity. I almost always use arborio rice, both because its easy to find and affordable and because its what I know, but I was super excited to try out the rice that Marx Foods sent me: Vialone Nano, Organic Arborio, Organic Integrale (a brown rice), and Organic Carnaroli. Shawn and I did a blind tasting and ended up ranking the rice the exact same way as each other — and the results surprised us!
First, the ground rules: In order to keep the results as unbiased as possible, I identified each rice only by the pan that I cooked it in; I didn’t know which was which until the end. I prepared them all at the same time (quite the task!) using a simple recipe that would let the flavor of the rice itself shine through — just the rice, some onion, white wine, and chicken stock. I kept detailed notes as I cooked and tasted and rated each rice on appearance, creaminess, smell, and taste. When Shawn came home from work, he tasted each and ranked his favorites (again, he didn’t know which was which. He also didn’t know that I used the same recipe for each version of the risotto.)
Roast Steelhead with Citrus & Olives over Saffron Risotto
| November 1, 2010 | Filled under Fish and Seafood, Lent, Risotto, Shawn's Favorites, Sides, Special Occasions |
Welcome to the party! Today’s recipe is part of November’s Kitchen Play Progressive Party – a fun, new series where once a month, six bloggers are assigned a course and tasked with using a featured product to create an original recipe. This month’s sponsor isLindsay Olives and I’m serving up a delicious entrée of steelhead trout roasted with rosemary, orange, and olives over saffron risotto.
When the folks over at Lindsay asked which olives I would be interested in trying out, I was immediately drawn to their Naturals line, which are processed without artificial colors, preservatives, or other yucky stuff. These olives are pretty much as simple as you can get – the only ingredients listed on the can are olives, water, and salt! The olives themselves are meaty and buttery, with a smooth flavor that lends itself well to cooking.
I knew that I wanted to do something different with these olives than a typical tapenade and that I wanted them to be featured prominently in the entrée that I created. Since I loved the braised olives in Sally Bee’s Moroccan Chicken, I wanted to try another preparation in which the olives were served warm. I decided to keep things simple by roasting them along with a few other ingredients and serving it over risotto (my motto: when all else fails, make risotto) and I couldn’t have been happier with how this entrée turned out. Roasting the olives brought out their natural sweetness, and they paired perfectly with the fatty fish and bright citrus. This is a dish that I would happily serve to dinner guests (real or virtual) and that I look forward to making again!
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Roast Steelhead with Citrus & Olives over Saffron Risotto
2- 6 oz Steelhead Trout Filets (you can substitute Salmon)
Zest and Juice from 1 Orange
2 sprigs fresh Rosemary
1 cup Lindsay Naturals Green Ripe Olives, rinsed
Salt and Pepper
Saffron Risotto (see below)
Preheat oven to 400.
Rub the orange zest into the fish. Place the rosemary in the bottom of a cast iron pan or baking dish. Lay the trout, skin-side down, over the rosemary. Add the olives around the salmon. Pour the juice over the salmon and olives.
Roast for 10 minutes, or until the fish is cooked to medium. Season with salt and pepper.
Discard rosemary and serve over saffron risotto.
Serves 2.
Saffron Risotto
4 cups Chicken Stock
2 pinches Saffron
1 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup Arborio Rice
1 cup white wine
Add the stock and saffron to a small saucepan set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until soft and fragrant.
Add the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until it becomes translucent with a small white dot in the center of each grain.
Add the wine. Cook, stirring constantly, until the wine cooks off and the pan is almost dry. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
Ladle in 1 cup of the chicken stock. Cook, stirring constantly, until the liquid is almost absorbed. Repeat this process, adding a half cup of stock at a time, until the rice is creamy and soft.
Serves 2.
Want a chance to win $100?
For each course from the Progressive Party that you recreate at home, you’ll be entered for a chance to win. (That means up to six entries!) Pop on over the Kitchen Play for the details!
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