Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Pea & Bacon Risotto


Last week the weather was still crappy. Still time to make risotto! I've never made risotto before, but I think it's high time. I found the perfect recipe on Epicurious.com for Pea and Bacon Risotto, so if you want the recipe, click the link.

The verdict? Ed and I loved it. The kids thought it was a little too rich. I didn't make anything to go with it and they were wondering where all the "meat" was. It's not that expensive to make, with the exception of the parmesan cheese. I still suggest not skimping on the parmesan. I bought an $8 lump of the real thing and we've been enjoying it all week, on salads, potatoes, garlic bread, etc.

I get all my ingredients together...

Who am I kidding? I'm no Pioneer Woman. I'm more like the Swedish Chef (Bork, bork, bork!). Still, I try and have some semblance of mise en place as I don't want to be frantically prepping ingredients while the risotto burns.

I brown the bacon and heat up a mixture of chicken broth and water. When the bacon is done, I add the garlic and a couple of shallots (shallots not included in recipe, but I had them on hand and one reviewer suggested the addition of an onion).

Toasting the rice...
I start adding the liquid a little at a time. Stirring. And stirring. And trying not to drop the camera in the pot...
Finally it was time to add the peas. Then the butter, parm, and lemon. By this point I probably overcooked it a bit as I anticipated my kids not appreciating "al dente" rice.

Still, it turned out creamy and rich. The addition of the lemon gave it a nice bright note in the face of so many rich ingredients. I'm going to make this again, but not for the kids. Anyone want to come over?

2 comments:

Laura Chamberlain said...

I can testify it was yummy. Creamy yummy!

Adventurous Housewife said...

Me too:) The bacon was like icing on the cake:)