March 21, 2007 at 8:55 pm
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Asparagus is my favorite vegetable so I jumped at the chance to try the Asparagus Parsley Pesto Risotto Bake featured in the April issue of Rachael Ray’s magazine. Admittedly, I was a little freaked out by the whole “risotto bake” part of the title. I wasn’t entirely sure if it was going to work, but my curiosity at testing out the baking capabilities of my new Target Chefmate Dutch Oven won out over my apprehensions. Not to mention, that as much as I love risotto, it can be a bit labor intensive stirring a hot pot of rice continuously for 20-30 minutes. In fact, I’ve been known to read a book in order to combat culinary boredom during that step.
Anyway, the dish ended up having a decidedly “Spring-like” feel, taste, and look and I really loved that the asparagus stayed crisp and turned a gorgeous shade of green after its brief baking time. Unfortunately, the first evening that I ate it I really wasn’t happy with the outcome. I felt that something was missing, but then I ate leftovers of the dish on two consecutive days and it was 3000 times better. In fact, I would actually go so far as to categorize it as delicious! Upon sitting overnight the lemon and parsley pesto really had a chance to flavor the dish to a whole new level that just wasn’t there during the initial serving. To remedy this issue, next time I plan to bake the Arborio rice completely in chicken stock (substituting extra stock for water) and also adding lemon juice, white wine, and extra zest to the dish as well. Practice makes perfect…

Onions Again |

Toasty Rice |

Add the Stock |

Parsley, Pine Nuts, Parmesan, and Lemon |

Add Cheese & Asparagus, Bake Again |

Spring Has Sprung |
February 1, 2007 at 6:27 pm
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November 19, 2006 at 4:28 pm
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October 24, 2006 at 9:43 pm
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It’s fairly obvious from the selection of recipes I’ve featured so far on erincooks.com that I am a Food Network addict. When I was living on my own after college for the first time I was made thoroughly aware of the fact that I was extremely deficient in the cooking department. After living on Pasta Roni and Skillet Sensations for a few weeks I’d had enough. One of the first actual meals I cooked was a Spinach Lasagna that I found on Kraftfoods.com. I vividly remember being incredibly proud of myself for putting together this dish on my own. I had always enjoyed baking cookies or cheesecake, but I’d really never tried to make dinner. Thanks to one good kitchen experience I had the courage to keep trying my hand at new recipes and the Food Network became my constant inspiration, especially Everyday Italian. I think I could eat pasta for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if left to my own devices. Thankfully I do have some modicum of self-control. Anyway, Giada’s Chicken Ragu recipe is super easy, although I’ll caution that I’d probably just use diced boneless, skinless chicken breasts next time and not boneless chicken thighs. Personally, I wasn’t a big fan of the chicken thighs (I hate dark meat). However, I am a big fan of garlic, cheese, and red sauce. I use Pastene Kitchen Ready Tomatoes as a base and then add garlic, basil, oregano, thyme, and just a little brown sugar (like a tablespoon). Trust me, it’s delicious!

Shallots, Thighs, Linguine, & Rosemary |

Chopped & Minced |

Cook Until Golden (Add Shallots & Garlic) |

Wine |

Add Rosemary & Mix |

Pour in the Marinara |

Meanwhile, Boil |

Strain |

Simmer |

Combine |

Garnish & Serve |
October 12, 2006 at 3:25 pm
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Risotto is my second favorite dish to make (behind any kind of soup). What I love about risotto is that you can just toss in fun combinations of veggies, handfuls of grated cheese, and dinner is done (well after you stir it until your arm is ready to fall off, but personally I can use the upper body exercise). In this particular instance I used zucchini, summer squash, and mushrooms. My basic risotto recipe is from the Williams-Sonoma Complete Pasta Cookbook
but you could also use this one and vary the vegetables.

Slice, Dice & Chop |

Gather |

Pat Dry, Salt & Pepper |

Saute the Onion in Olive Oil |

Zucchini, Squash & Mushrooms |

Arborio Rice & Wine |

Add Stock Slowly |

Stir, Stir, Stir, Stir, Stir… |

Combine Garlic & Veggies |

Season |

Stir, Stir, Stir, Stir, Stir… |

Set Aside |

5 Minutes on Each Side |

Add Veggies (Stir…) |

Rest |

CHEESE! |

Stir (One Last Time) |

Fall Risotto & Turkey Cutlets |