Parmesan Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients: Arborio rice, white wine, Crimini mushrooms, Shiitake mushrooms, Parmigiano Reggiano, unsalted butter, vegetable stock, dried oregano, bay leaf, kosher salt, black pepper

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Mushrooms and risotto are a classic pairing that never fails - throw in your favorite mushrooms, any will do, but make sure you include a variety for more depth of flavor. I used crimini (brown) and shiitakes for this, but I've seen a Jamie Oliver recipe of up to 5 different kinds. 

Start by sauteeing the mushrooms with some butter and garlic, then add about 4 cups of the Arborio rice. Adding white wine is a must and gives the whole dish a bit of that elegance that really elevates all of the other ingredients. Once the white wine has evaporated, you start adding 4 cups of stock, one cup at a time; it really only takes about 15-18 minutes and it's not bad at all. Just keep stirring!

Turn off the heat when all the stock has evaporated and add about 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese. If you let it sit for about 3-5 mins before serving, it thickens up to the most perfect risotto consistency. Serve with a simple side of arugula salad and some dry white wine!

From the Market // Pomegranates

  

I'm sure you've been seeing a lot of pomegranates crop up at the markets lately as they're in full harvest! I think the season might even be ending soon, so stock up. Pomegranates were always one of those fruits that I was slightly intimidated by, thinking it just took too much effort to pull out all the seeds. Plus the juice always turned me off since it stained horribly... but I was so wrong!

It's such an easy fruit to cut into and actually sort of fun to peel. I just cut crosswise in half, and then again so that they are cut into quarters. You then just pry apart the white pith and the seeds just roll out. It's so simple, not messy, and very quick. I think this would be really fun to do with your kids (just tell them not to squeeze the seeds!). They sell fresh pomegranate seeds at Trader Joes already peeled - but each little package will cost you about $3-$4 .... one whole pomegranate was about 50 cents at the farmer's market and will yield about two packages they would sell at the store (the photos of the seeds here are just from half a pomegranate!).

I eat pomegranates with either sweet or savory dishes - on top of your yogurt and granola for breakfast or simmered down into a nice sauce or glaze drizzled over a pork chop. My favorite thing to do is to add some fresh pomegranate on top of my Moroccan Chicken dish. Stay tuned...

Roasted Tomato + Leek Soup w/ Basil Rice

Ingredients: Beefsteak Tomatoes, leeks, garlic, brown rice, fresh basil + stems, dried basil, dried thyme, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, sugar, olive oil 

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This is probably the best comfort soup for Fall! It has very minimal ingredients that yields such a flavorful and filling soup. It's fairly simple to make with an extra step to puree them all together to get it to that perfect consistency. 

Roasting the tomatoes probably took the longest, taking about 1 1/2 hours in the oven at 400F - but it's worth it! Start by halving the Beefsteaks crosswise (I used about 7 tomatoes), sprinkling them with the dried herbs, salt & pepper, and olive oil. Once they come out of the oven, they're practically falling apart, incredibly juicy and very very sweet. Plus it gets your kitchen smelling like Italy. 

In a large Dutch oven or equally durable pot, sauté about 4 garlic cloves in some olive oil until they're golden and then throw in the chopped leeks (white and pale green parts only!). Once they've softened, add the tomatoes and simmer for about 15 mins until they're officially falling apart. Then throw the whole mixture into the blender and puree the hell out of it - as chunky or as smooth as you want.

Transfer the soup back into the pot and let it simmer a bit more and do some taste-testing, adding salt, sugar, or more black pepper to taste. 

I serve this with some Basil Brown Rice, cooking the rice with several fresh basil stems (just take off the leaves) so that the rice absorbs the aromatics of the basil. Spoon some into your soup bowls and ladle the soup right over it. This will be great with some Parmesan cheese crisps, a dollop of Ricotta, or of course, some fresh basil.