Weekend Grub: Summer Vegetable Risotto
Summer Vegetable Risotto
Use this recipe as a model for many of your favorite seasonal vegetables, so long as those on the sturdy side (bell peppers, artichoke hearts, broccoli, beets) are precooked until not quite tender, either by blanching, steaming, or roasting. As a general rule, for every cup of rice, you will need about 3 cups of simmering broth.
Cooking time: The total cooking time from the first addition of liquid to the rice to the completion of the risotto containing vegetables is typically about twenty-five minutes. But let your taste buds be the guide. Risotto is not as complicated as many think. It just requires some time at the stove. Use that time as an opportunity to engage in "cooking meditation." It really is very therapeutic! 
Makes 4 main course servings
INGREDIENTS
6 cups vegetable broth, plus additional (if necessary)
½ cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped, about 1 cup
3 garlic cloves, crushed or chopped
1 yellow summer squash, diced
1 or 2 zucchini squash, diced
4-5 ears corn enough for 3-1/2 cups kernels (you may used canned or frozen)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mixed herbs (basil, dill, sage, etc.)
1-1/2 cups arborio rice
Salt and pepper to taste
Toasted pine nuts (optional)
Yellow pear tomatoes, for garnish (optional)
Fresh herbs, finely chopped (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Remove husks and silk from corn. Working over a large bowl to catch the corn kernels and juices, cut kernels from corncobs with a sharp knife. (If using canned or frozen, just drain the water.)
2. Heat the broth in a large pot.
3. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over high heat and saute the zucchini and yellow squash until lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
4. Sauté the onion and garlic in the remaining oil until tender but not brown, about 5 minutes.
5. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
6. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add ½ cup of the simmering broth mixture to the skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, until almost all of the liquid has been absorbed. Continue adding the broth mixture ½ cup at a time, cooking and stirring until it is almost completely absorbed and the rice begins to soften, about 15 minutes.
7. When down to last two cups of liquid, add corn kernels. Continue cooking, adding liquid 1/2 cup at a time.
8. Stir in the squash and another ½ cup of the broth mixture. Continue to stir constantly until the liquid has almost been absorbed, until the mixture is creamy, not runny, the rice is tender yet firm to the bite, and the vegetables are heated through, about 5 minutes.
9. Remove from the heat and stir in the herbs. Serve at once, garnished with the pine nuts, pear tomatoes, and finely chopped fresh herbs, such as basil, parsley, and tarragon, if using.
Optional: Add non-dairy butter in the last 10 minutes of cooking. Earth Balance is the best non-dairy butter out there! No GMOs, no hydrogenated oil, no saturated fat, no animal protein, no cholesterol. Some variations (like the whipped) are organic.
More recipes and resources at Compassionate Cooks.
Tags: arborio, broccoli, cook, eat, Food, Food Production, Health and Health Products, Local Food, meal, non-dairy, Organic food, protein, recipe, rice, risotto, summer, sustainable, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian, Weekend Grub
August 7th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
Since I regularly enjoy rice, I thought that I would share a relatively short story. This one should surprise you and your readers.
Way back in 1995, I worked at a small electric generating facility that utilized waste rice hulls for fuel. Yes, I worked in bio-fuels before bio-fuels were cool. This facility’s purpose was to generate electricity for a neighboring rice mill and to sell any excess to the utility company. The power plant had a seventeen acre pond that utilized a series of levees to direct the flow and to cool the water that was used in the steam turbine’s condenser. At one time there was consideration given to using the pond to raise freshwater prawns, because the water temperature remained ideal year around. However, that plan never materialized.
Anyway, let’s get to the point that should prove surprising. The cooling water pond was a constant point of interest for the EPA and the state’s DEQ during my tenure. Why were those regulatory agencies interested in a pond? It was because the soil at the bottom of the pond had measurable levels of mercury in it. Now, you might be wondering where the mercury in the pond had originated. The story that I was told - which unfortunately I have no way of confirming via documentation - was that it was a by-product of a milling operation that had been abandoned decades ago. The field that had been converted into a pond used to be the collection area for mill wastes; primarily husks, bran and off-spec rice. As there was no market at that time for these waste products, they were allowed to decompose for sale as compost to farmers or sent to a landfill. It was believed that these waste products were responsible for the mercury in the field. How could this be? You see, mercury was used to polish rice before we knew about heavy-metal poisoning. Trace amounts of the stuff found its way into the waste products and ultimately leached into the soil. The fact that a heavy metal was used to polish food is a bit surprising, but even more surprising was that the authorities did not care until the power plant was up and running. You see, back then (not sure about today) those agencies regulated industrial facilities and farming facilities based upon different sets of rules. Had there only been a mill (farm related) with mercury in the adjacent field, there would have been no concern. However, the power plant (industry related) had to operate under a more stringent set of guidelines. If the regulatory agencies could connect the power plant to the mercury, fines could have been issued. When I left that company, the agencies and the owners were still discussing the problem and a resolution was pending. So, there’s the surprise. Our regulatory agencies sometimes take a closer look at the industrial sector as opposed to the sector that produces the food we eat.
August 7th, 2007 at 11:48 pm
I may have missed it when reading, but the instructions don’t appear to say when to add the wine. In my experience with risotto (which isn’t a whole lot, hence my interest in this recipe), it is usually added just after the rice gets heated up, before any broth goes in.