Archives for posts with tag: sidedish

chanterelle risotto.

December 19, 2014 //
0

chantrelles

chanterelle + white wine + shallots + risotto

I went chanterelle mushroom hunting for the first time this week. It was amazing to be outside in the woods, everywhere you looked you saw beauty, unfortunately everywhere we looked we did not find any quality chanterelles. Next time. It was still a lovely day, in good spirits and luckily I was able to procure some excellent chanterelles from our mushroom vendor. These golden looking, golden tasting mushrooms also happen to be golden priced. While I am not hesitant to spend my money on high end, quality ingredients it is oh so much nicer to enjoy the perks of my profession.

I have never made risotto, I was always nervous to make it because of the dreaded mushy consistency it often becomes, and I shied away from this Italian style dish. It sounded like the perfect pairing and I know my man loves it, so it was just the right thing to try out for date night.

3 cups chicken stock
4 tbsp. butter
2 minced, peeled shallots
4 cups cleaned small chanterelles
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano

1. Bring chicken stock to a simmer in a saucepan over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low to maintain simmer.

2. Melt 2 tbsp. butter in a medium deep pot over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook for 1 minute. Add small chanterelles and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then transfer to a bowl.

3. Melt 2 tbsp. additional butter in same pot over medium heat, add short-grain rice, and cook, stirring constantly, until lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the hot stock and cook, stirring frequently, until liquid is almost absorbed. Continue adding stock, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring frequently, until rice is tender but firm to the bite and mixture is creamy but not soupy, about 25 minutes. Add chanterelles just before last addition of stock. Stir in parmigiano-reggiano, adjust seasonings, and serve immediately.

We also baked chicken with white wine, spices, and parmesan to serve with our risotto as well as a simple baby kale and pomegranate seed salad. A perfect rustic meal.

Tags , , , , , ,
Categories Uncategorized

roasted sunchokes

December 23, 2013 //
2

Photo Dec 23, 2 46 59 PM

Growing up my dad chose to put his foot down and take his wife and four daughters to Maui every year for Thanksgiving, thus escaping the craziness of a huge family get together. I was incredibly lucky to spend countless hours in the ocean, playing with my friends I’d made over the years and quality time with my sisters. I cherish that intimate family time and the memories we made.

Christmas has always been the opposite, a big get together with aunties and uncles, cousins, my sisters and their families, friends and little ones. This year we have close to thirty people over for dinner. We are having beef tenderloin and salmon this year, with our guests bringing side dishes. I wanted to try something different, and enjoyed the bites of the sunchoke and pork belly dish my dad had recently ordered at a dinner out at Soif so much. Sunchokes look like ginger, but can be prepared like a potato. Scrub them clean with a stiff vegetable brush. Slice them about 1/4″ thick, I found I liked the texture much more when they weren’t too thin.

Ingredients:
2 to 3 large sunchokes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 sprig of fresh rosemary, leaves removed
3 to 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Scrub the sunchokes clean. When picking them out at the store, try to avoid the really knobby ones, because it makes it more difficult to clean. Slice thinly. Add the garlic and sunchokes to a roasting pan, tossing them in olive oil. I like to use a refillable spray like this one because you can evenly and lightly cover your veggies or pastas that way. Sprinkle with salt and rosemary and let roast for approximately 15 minutes. They are a great substitute for potatoes and taste a touch sweet.

 

roasted sunchoke

Tags , , , , , , , , ,
Categories Side dishes, Uncategorized