End of Winter Recipes: Drunken Risotto

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Drunken Risotto, Drunken Risotto Recipe, Drunken Risotto with Kielbasa, Drunken Risotto with Kielbasa Cabbage and Mushrooms, Risotto, Risotto Recipe

It is a bizarre day outside right now. It is 55 degrees, foggy, gusty and the rain is coming in at an angle. I can’t decide if I am supposed to be running around in shorts or cuddled up in a blanket with a good book and hot chocolate. Whatever this weather is, it is making me crave comfort food. So I thought I’d share with you my new risotto recipe! (Yes, I am obsessed.)

Drunken Risotto with Kielbasa, Cabbage, Peas and Mushrooms

Opening the fridge a few days ago, I knew I wanted risotto, but was unsure if I had the right ingredients. Staring back at me was an oversized cabbage, a link of Kielbasa and mushrooms; the last of the winter produce. But the only wine I had in the house was red. Never fear; time for drunken risotto with a distinctly Polish theme!

Drunken risotto simply means that the rice is made with red wine instead of white. In the case of this recipe, I find it adds a totally different dimension to the dish. The red wine pairs perfectly with the earthy tastes of the mushrooms and Kielbasa.

Must stir, must stir, must stir constantly!

Drunken Risotto with Kielbasa, Cabbage,  and Mushrooms

• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups of water
• 1¼  cup Aborrio rice
• ¾ pound of Kielbasa, sliced into small chunks
• 3 tablespoons butter
• medium onion, chopped
• garlic
• ¾ cup dry red wine
• half of a large cabbage, chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1-cup mushrooms, chopped
• ¾ cup Parmesan

1. Combine the chicken stock and water in a saucepan. Heat till warm and then keep at a constant temperature just below simmering.

2. In a frying pan cook the Kielbasa and then set aside.

3. Melt 1½ Tbs butter to heavy bottom pot (or risotto pan) on medium high heat. Add onion and sauté until tender. Add garlic and mushrooms. Cook until fragrant. (You can add more butter if you would like for the mushrooms to soak it up.)

4. Add the rice. Stir for a few minutes until well coated, and then add the wine. When all the wine is absorbed add between ½ cup and 1 cup of stock to the rice. Stir continuously until all of the stock is absorbed. Then add another ½ cup of hot stock. At this point add all of the cabbage. After adding 3 cups of stock add in the frozen peas. Continue adding stock until rice is tender, about 22 minutes. (You may have some stock leftover)

Adding stock to the risotto

5. Just before the rice is finished, add the Kielbasa. When the rice is tender, stir in the Parmesan, and glaze with the remaining butter. Garnish with finely chopped parsley, if desired.

Dinner Time!

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Lobster and Shrimp Risotto with Kippy Rudy

Tags

Arborrio Rice, Contest, fish stock, How to clean a lobster, How to Video, Kippy Rudy, Lobster, Lobster and Shrimp Risotto, Lobster Risotto, Maine Shrimp

The lobstah!

A few weeks ago, my friend and accomplished cook, Kippy Rudy volunteered to be my first guinea pig for my food blog videos. I had just procured a new camera and was eager to test it out. The blog was barely a few days old and I wanted to see if I could incorporate videos. We decided to feature her beloved Lobster Risotto which she has been perfecting over the past few months.

Kippy Rudy in her kitchen

One night we took over her kitchen and invited over some friends to help with the chaos. Harris and Meredith came over to help, provide comments and keep us laughing and sane. Marina, Kippy’s daughter, helped me light the space and do screen tests. We started around 6 pm and did not eat until 10 pm. It was a long night full of tech problems, giggle fests, wine and learning. All of us were pretty silly by the end.

The next day I downloaded my camera and anxiously realized that I had shot over two hours of video. To top it off you could hear my tripod creaking through the entire shot. Oh well, you learn from your mistakes! In addition you could hear all of us laughing and cracking “that’s what she said” jokes throughout. Would it be ok for something as serious as my fledgling food blog?

So I reminded myself of the true goal of cooking and food. Yes, at its core level food is about nourishment but it is so much more. Food is a common ground; a medium through which we all can enjoy, laugh and come together. Why do I love Julia Child so much? Because she embraced the silly, the mistakes and the adventurous! By golly! This video was not going to win me an award but it would at least document what a great time we had filming it. Kippy had done a top-notch job demonstrating how to clean a lobster and had provided me with a wonderful glimpse into the world of risotto.  The video deserved to be shown.

To fully embrace the silly I’ve decided to add a contest to this post. First person to comment with the correct amount of times there is an outburst from the peanut gallery will win a bag of Aborrio rice! You must use a valid email address to enter and the mother of the author does not qualify for this contest (sorry Ma!).

For the full recipe see below the video.

Kippy Rudy’s Lobster and Shrimp Risotto:

• 5 cups fish stock
• 1 1/4 cup aborrio rice
• medium onion, chopped
• olive oil
• garlic
• 3/4 c white wine
• meat of 1-2 cooked lobsters
• 1 lb cooked Maine shrimp
• fresh parsley (1/4 cup, more to taste)
• parmesan (at least 1/2 cup, more to taste)
• 1 1/2 tbs butter

1. Heat the stock and keep warm on the burner.

2. Add olive oil to heavy bottom pot on medium heat, when hot add onion and saute until tender. Add garlic (I do more garlic than most people, one two or three good cloves, but you can go more mild). Stir and add rice, coating in olive oil of the pan. Stir for a few minutes, then add wine. When all the wine is absorbed, begin adding ladelfulls of stock. Stir continuously, tradition dictates a figure eight pattern. When all the liquid is absorbed, add another ladelfull of hot stock. This process will continue until rice is tender, about 22 minutes.

3. Just before the rice is finished, add the chopped lobster and shrimp. At the end stir in cheese and parsley, and glaze with the butter at end. Garnish with more parsley and cheese.

Lobster and Shrimp Risotto