Coconut Curry Barley Risotto

Prior to this instance, I've never once re-made a recipe for the blog because I didn't think it came out well enough the first time.  In most cases, I'll note how to make the recipe better for the next time (although I hardly make anything twice anymore) and post whatever results from the first attempt.

Risotto is tricky; so even though my first attempt with this idea last Wednesday was delicious tasting, I knew I could achieve a better risotto consistency after learning a few lessons.  And, mostly, it didn't look like risotto in the photographs.  While in real life the barley was still thick and creamy, it read in the images as more of a barley pilaf.  I've seen enough food programming on reality TV to know that when you call something a risotto, it better look and feel like risotto.  

Like I said, in most cases I would either just post what I got the first time or discard the idea for the post all together, but the flavor of this dish was so good that I had to give it another go.  If you like Thai curry soup, or Southeast Asian flavors in general, then this is right up your alley.  If you love creamy risotto as well, then I think this is your jackpot.  If you've become a vegan and miss creamy, cheesy things, I hope you can add this to your recipe box.

Like a true risotto, the dish is very rich.  As a savory meal, the edamame and shitake mushrooms are obviously a Southeast Asian play on the traditional Italian peas and crimini mushrooms, but I most definitely plan on making a sweet version with honey, raisins, and almonds for a future dessert (especially if it was pumpkin & chai spiced!).

portobello black bean turkey burgers

PORTOBELLO BLACK BEAN TURKEY BURGERS

Today Garrett and I leave for Morocco and Portugal, which not only means the next few weeks will be a great adventure, but that I'll return and summer will be over before I know it.  The next few posts will embrace as much summer as there is left to cling to, starting with a great alternative summer burger.

But first, let me mark a milestone for this blog.  As my loyal viewers know, the catalyst for blogging started when one of my best buds, Bree, got engaged last fall.  This weekend I celebrated her wedding day, which reminded me that love and friendships are so much more important that stolen debit cards and $200 parking tickets for expired Chicago city stickers (because that happened to me this weekend, as well).  The bride and groom looked absolutely stunning and incredibly fit, and I hope a few of the recipes on the blog helped them enjoy getting so hot for the beginning of their lives together.  I have to give a little shout-out to Joanna and Chris, another bride and groom whose wedding I was lucky to attend last night.  Both weddings were not only charming, classy, and sweet, but also full of delicious food!

So, if you stuffed yourself anywhere near the extent to which I did this weekend, then here's a good burger recipe that will make you feel good without missing out on any more summer fun.  Really, its all about doing whatever personal things you usually do with your burger, and replacing the bun with some juicy grilled portobello mushrooms.  Yeah, you'll probably need a fork and a knife, but hopefully its of a plastic variety at some backyard summer BBQ.

Frittata

FRITTATA 

W/ CARMELIZED ONION, TURKEY SAUSAGE, MUSHROOM, & SPINACH

Why is it that my most successful meals are always the "kitchen sink" recipes?

I guess there are just some culinary platforms that lend themselves well to combining nearly whatever is left over in the fridge at the end of the week producing a highly edible result - like soups, salads, and pizzas.  (I mean, what wouldn't  you put on top of a pizza?)  Well, add "frittata" to that list.

While I don't have the gastronomical or anthropological background to support this claim, I'm pretty convinced that the frittata was invented for the purpose of avoiding wastefulness.  The brunch restaurant down the street from me always has a frittata that just so happens to use ingredients on the last week's menu...hmmm.  But, imagine your average leftovers - your scraps of meat dried out by reheating, your vegetable side dishes turned to mush in the microwave - and consider the bright future they might have when combined with some eggs and baked into a healthy comfort food!  Free those leftovers from their Tupperware prisons and give them new life!

This recipe was thrown together from a number of fresh ingredients I had lying around in-wait, and certainly a whole range of meats and vegetables would work.  I just happened to have onion, mushroom, spinach, and ground turkey.  Of course, you can spin a frittata into any cultural flavor spectrum by spicing your sauteed vegetables or meat with your favorites from the spice rack.  I know many a frittata adds cheese to the mix, but I wanted to keep this one as lean as possible.

So bottom line: go sautée some meats and vegetables (separately), combine with seasoning and eggs, bake, enjoy hot or cold.

sauteed shitake and broccoli rabe

Spring has sprung and so has my appetite for all things green.  Hence, this week I nabbed a new green item from the grocery store that I had never tried before: broccoli rabe.  Apparently, this is also known as rapini.  If you've never tried it, I'm obviously recommending you use the application in this recipe to combine it with other vegetables for a healthy meal or side dish.  The texture was really nice with shitakes, and mushrooms also gave the rabe a richness to balance its freshness.  The taste will remind you of broccoli, but more delicate and with the slight bitterness of spinach.  I may not be describing it well, but perhaps just saying that broccoli rabe will now be part of my normal repertoire is the best selling point.  

Like spinach, broccoli rabe is a vegetable that can be made to feel rich and filling without adding a million calories to your day.  I couldn't help but top it with a fried egg to get a good, rich coating of yolk (liquid gold), but it was really delicious without the extra cholesterol, as well.

If you were around for the Moroccan Stuffed Eggplant post, you know that I'm trying to trim down a little.  So far my results have been...mixed.  I started working out again and have been eating much healthier, but if you've ever been to Chicago on a sunny day over 50 degrees than you know that eating outside is a Chicagoans favorite thing to do.  So this weekend was packed with with food-hopping activities with family and friends.  I did my best to avoid multiple opportunities for french toast, but fell victim to candied bacon (yeah I didn't think that sounded good either, but trust me, you are wrong) and a slice of Sweet Mandy B's birthday cake.  Luckily, the time spent outdoors burned off a few extra calories.

So, despite the egg, the sauteed shitake and broccoli rabe is putting me back on track for this week.