A Healthier Risotto, Part II

A while back I posted a recipe for a yummy risotto using whole grain farro instead of arborio rice.  I thought it was perfect.  Then I was asked to do a cooking demo at the Union Street Festival and I consulted with Tom of TomFoolCookery.com about what I should fix.  He knew I was pretty pleased with my new "farrotto" recipe, and suggested I do that.  I fixed it for him and he made a couple suggestions that transformed it from what I thought was perfect to.....perfecter (oh, let's just make that a word!).

I had always made my risotto with wine and broth, per the traditional recipes that I learned from (yes, that's a dangling preposition from a former English teacher, but you'll have to get used to that).  I had started adding the wine at the end of the process rather than at the beginning, and Tom thought that it left a bitter taste.  He suggested that I try using white wine vinegar instead.  I'm always game to try something new, and I love what vinegar adds to lots of other dishes I make, so I gave it a go.  What an unbelieveable flavor enhancer!  Wine was now out for me.

Next was the onion.  Classic risotto recipes start with sauteeing onions, and that didn't change in my farrotto.  But after cooking for 30-45 minutes, the onions are obviously very soft, and almost unrecognizable.  They've done their job of flavoring the dish, but they no longer add any texture.  The only thing I prize more than "pretty" in my cooking is texture.  So he suggested that I add another 1/2 cup of diced onion toward the end of cooking.  Again, I have to give him props on that suggestion.

The response that our farrotto received today (lots of "Oh my!", "YUM!" and "This is soooo good!") has caused me to rewrite that original recipe.  If you liked the first one, which I've heard many of you have, give this one a try.  You won't be sorry.....

Farrotto

Serves 4-6

8 cups vegetable broth* (Trader Joe's low sodium is still my fave)

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 cups diced onions, divided

2 teaspoons chopped garlic (more if you'd like)

2 cups farro

1 bunch asparagus, cleaned, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 teaspoons chopped thyme leaves (use lemon thyme if you can find it; BTW,  it's easy to grow)

1 lb shelled English peas

1/4 cup half & half (highly recommend local, organic Straus Family)

1/2 cup goat gouda

Sea salt & pepperr to taste

• Bring broth to a gentle boil, reduce heat and simmer. (A boil is a belly laugh; a simmer is a giggle.)
• Bring a separate pot of water to boil.
• In a large, deep-sided skillet heat butter and oilve oil.
• Add onions and saute for 3-5 minutes until translucent and beginning to soften.
• Add garlic and saute an additional minute, stirring constantly.
• Add farro and stir to coat all grains.  Continue toasting grains for 1-2 minutes.
• Add 1 cup of broth and stir, stir stir.
• Once liquid has evaporated, add another cup of broth and continue stirring constantly.
• Repeat process until farro is soft, about 30-45 minutes.  (Taste the texture after 30 minutes; farro should be softened, like al dente pasta.)
• While farro is cooking place asparagus in boiling water and cook 2 minutes. Drain and cool under cold water. 
• When farroto is near done, add white wine vinegar.  Taste and add more if necessary.
• Add remaining 1/2 cup diced onoin, lemon zest, thyme, asparagus and peas stirring to combine.
• Add half & half and cheese, stirring to combine.
• Season to taste with salt & pepper. 

You'll thank me even more now!  And go ahead, thank Tom, too.

A Healthier Risotto

It was going to be one of those days.  First of all, I spent a good five minutes walking around my house looking for a pair of my "cheaters" reading glasses.  Once I found them I went to put them on my face only to find....that I was already wearing a pair! Not my finest moment. (And don't you think I should've found them faster, since I was wearing glasses??)

 

So it shouldn't be surprising that my brain cramp might not be done with me yet. The perfect blog entry came my way when Bauman College's Chef Marcella said, "Let's make a farro risotto today." I was excited because I had been toying with this idea for a while, but hadn't gotten around to it.  Farro (also known as spelt, which sounds much less sexy) is a whole grain, which you know I dig over "the white stuff."  In the case of risotto, that white stuff is arborio rice.  Tasty and so creamy, but not a whole lot going for it in the nutrition game. Farro, on the other hand, is a great source of protein and fiber (at least double that of most common commercial grains), stimulates the immune system and helps lower cholesterol.    

OK, back to the brain cramp.... I prepped the ingredients and diligently took pictures along the way of all the beautiful produce in preparation for my blog post:

...the rainbow carrots,

the sugar snap peas (THAT'S a labor of love and a good excuse to get a manicure the next day; fingernails aren't supposed to be green, are they???),

 

red onion, leeks, and asparagus.

And then what do you think happened?  Did you guess that I ate my entire bowl of wildly good risotto, left class, drove home and then realized as I walked in the door that I forgot to take a picture of the final product!!?

So bummer, guess I have to make it again.  And EAT it again.  Poor me.

Farro Risotto

Serves  4

3 cups vegetable broth (you know I love Trader Joe's low sodium one)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup chopped onion

1 bunch asparagus, cut on the diagonal in 1" pieces

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 cup farro

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (I used lemon thyme...because I grow it and it's my favorite)

1/3 cup peas

1/4 cup half and half

1/2 cup goat gouda (that's cheese, people)

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

• Bring broth to a simmer over medium heat.  Keep warm, but don't allow to boil.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.
• Add onions and saute, stirring occassionally, for five minutes until beginning to soften.
• Add asparagus and continue cooking 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
• Stir in farro and toast for 2 minutes.
• Begin adding broth a half a cup at a time and stirring constanlty until liquid is absorbed.  (Sometimes I add water to the broth if I start to run low, so I am sure to have enough warm liquid to add; you never want to add cold liquid)
• Continue adding broth a little at a time until farro is soft, about 20 to 30 minutes.
• Add peas, thyme, half and half and cheese.  Stir until fully combined.
• Stir in lemon zest and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Top with chopped nuts.

Thank me later!!!