A Memoir In Food - reminiscing, recipes and overstaying my welcome.
The Lazy Cook Eats . . . Risotto from a Crockpot
Sure. Besides being a world class food grubber of the 'over at your house' variety, I'm also a very accomplished lazy cook. I love to eat, but the time it takes puts me into grasshopper mode (see the fable 'The Ant and the Grasshopper'). Spoiler alert: Industrious ant wins, carefree, hedonistic grasshopper starves.
Never fear, girlie will never starve as long as she has her garage full of appliances and cookware. The most useful being the pressure cooker my old friend Pamela Richard gave me back in the eighties and my crockpot. Yes, I still use that pressure cooker especially when I tire of stir-frying collards or kale or get an extremely unusual hankering to can something (usually peppers or hot sauce). For princess lazypants there has never been a more appreciated gift, but that's a different story.
This story is about good ol' crockpot and the recipe I found to make a no stir risotto with said utensil. I don't eat a lot of rice or risotto anymore, but when I do, its a fatty, starchy, fungal infused extravaganza; just to make it worth my dietary while. Today I was food-perving the web and ended up over at GalTime to find Camilla Saulsbury's No Stir Crockpot Risotto recipe.
I've changed it only by upping the garlic content, adding mushrooms to the mix and drinking the entire remaining pinot grigio I opened for the recipe. Enjoy. I certainly did.
Never fear, girlie will never starve as long as she has her garage full of appliances and cookware. The most useful being the pressure cooker my old friend Pamela Richard gave me back in the eighties and my crockpot. Yes, I still use that pressure cooker especially when I tire of stir-frying collards or kale or get an extremely unusual hankering to can something (usually peppers or hot sauce). For princess lazypants there has never been a more appreciated gift, but that's a different story.
This story is about good ol' crockpot and the recipe I found to make a no stir risotto with said utensil. I don't eat a lot of rice or risotto anymore, but when I do, its a fatty, starchy, fungal infused extravaganza; just to make it worth my dietary while. Today I was food-perving the web and ended up over at GalTime to find Camilla Saulsbury's No Stir Crockpot Risotto recipe.
I've changed it only by upping the garlic content, adding mushrooms to the mix and drinking the entire remaining pinot grigio I opened for the recipe. Enjoy. I certainly did.
No-Stir Sundried Tomato Risotto with Mushrooms
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 and 1/4 cups raw Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine (try Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc)
3 and 1/2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
1/4 cup roughly chopped oil-packed sundried tomatoes (blot away the oil)
1/2 cup sliced baby bella or cremini mushrooms
A pinch of crushed white peppercorn, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Add the rice, garlic and oil to the insert of the crock-pot, stir to coat.
Stir in the
white wine, broth, mushrooms and sundried tomatoes.
Cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours
(may take about 2 and 1/2 hours).
Serve topped with the Parmesan cheese.
4 servings.
Approximate Nutrition per Serving (1/4 of recipe):
Calories
311; Fat 3.4g (poly 0.2g, mono 1.6g, sat 1.4g); Protein 7.7g;
Cholesterol 3.1mg; Carbohydrate 67.3g; Fiber 4.1; Sodium 784mg)
Pasta Sundae or Fake Out?
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| Hold the parm, please. |
It seems this is actually an old school replay from the 1960's when some intrepid soul (Dario Fontanella of Germany, according to Wikipedia) found that shoving iced cream through a pasta machine was kind of cool.The Germans have been enjoying this for years, but you know . . . it takes a bit of time to jump the old pond.
Whew! I thought I was gonna have to try dark chocolate sprinkles, wet nuts (hey! no snickering), and butterscotch sauce on a heap of steaming semolina. Glad that is not the case.
Like your sauce red? Try strawberry or raspberry sauce. Gotta have that faux meat feel? A couple of scoops of chocolate will get your meatball lookalike rolling and don't forget a sprinkle of toasted coconut - the grated cheese, of course.
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| What?! I thought that was vodka sauce. |
If you are feeling industrious there is a recipe on About.com. If not, truck on over to New York, make an inappropriate Anthony Weiner joke, then head to Dolce Gelateria for a creamy pasta-like fix. Personally, I will probably hold out until the German's figure out how to make gelato Spaghettio's.
Dolce Sweetness in Life - 33 Barrow Street, New York, NY 10014
http://www.dolce-sweetness.com/#1
I Love It When José Cooks for Me
That is why I visit José Andrés' restaurants as much as possible. The salad below featuring his line of ingredients, was posted on his facebook page today and puts sardines to a fine, light and luscious use. Not to mention its easy and oh so quick to make, while also fitting into the low carb/Paleo lifestyle. Enjoy!
Clementinas con Sardinas y Aceitunas (Clementines with Sardines and Olives)
September 6, 2013 at 12:03pm
A delicious, light and healthy salad that's easy to make and sure to impress your friends and family!

***
Clementinas con Sardinas y Aceitunas
Clementines with Sardines and Olives
Serves4
For the dressing:
- 1 cup José Andrés Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil
(http://bit.ly/18qYBUe)
- ¼ cup José Andrés Reserva Sherry Vinegar
(http://bit.ly/1cPy7jM)
- Zest and juice of 2 clementines
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 12 José Andrés Arbequina Olives, pitted and halved
(http://bit.ly/155rBDO)
- Sea salt to taste
For the salad:
- 4 clementines, peeled and sliced into ¼-inch rounds
- ½ head romaine lettuce
- ½ head Bibb lettuce
- ½ head Lolla Rosa lettuce
- 8 José Andrés Sardines in Olive Oil
(http://bit.ly/14qvZi0)
- Sea salt to taste
---
To make the dressing:
Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, clementine juice, zest, shallots and olives in a medium bowl. Season with salt and set aside.
To make the salad:
Divide the heads of lettuce into individual leaves and distribute them evenly among 4 plates or serving bowls. Place two sardines and ¼ of the clementine slices on each salad. Drizzle each salad with dressing and season sea salt.
www.JoseAndresFoods.com
(c) 2013 José Andrés


***
Clementinas con Sardinas y Aceitunas
Clementines with Sardines and Olives
Serves4
For the dressing:
- 1 cup José Andrés Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil
(http://bit.ly/18qYBUe)
- ¼ cup José Andrés Reserva Sherry Vinegar
(http://bit.ly/1cPy7jM)
- Zest and juice of 2 clementines
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 12 José Andrés Arbequina Olives, pitted and halved
(http://bit.ly/155rBDO)
- Sea salt to taste
For the salad:
- 4 clementines, peeled and sliced into ¼-inch rounds
- ½ head romaine lettuce
- ½ head Bibb lettuce
- ½ head Lolla Rosa lettuce
- 8 José Andrés Sardines in Olive Oil
(http://bit.ly/14qvZi0)
- Sea salt to taste
---
To make the dressing:
Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, clementine juice, zest, shallots and olives in a medium bowl. Season with salt and set aside.
To make the salad:
Divide the heads of lettuce into individual leaves and distribute them evenly among 4 plates or serving bowls. Place two sardines and ¼ of the clementine slices on each salad. Drizzle each salad with dressing and season sea salt.
www.JoseAndresFoods.com
(c) 2013 José Andrés

A New Fav Cocktail
The Grassy Kroll - a seasonal cocktail @ all W hotels. I'm at the Midtown Atlanta location and you can be sure I'll be imbibing another in the Living Room Bar at the W hotel in Washington, D.C. before summer ends.
Bison grass vodka, muddled lemongrass, ginger & lemon - so refreshing with a kick.
$13
Bison grass vodka, muddled lemongrass, ginger & lemon - so refreshing with a kick.
$13
-- Sent from my Palm Pre 2
How to Drink and Not Get Fat
Who could resist a headline like that? Our friends at Tap & Cork in Brooklyn posted a one minute nutritional video (Beer Belly video) on their blog with this catchy conundrum.
The conclusion?
I'd knew they'd say that.
The conclusion?
"To drink without gaining weight, you’ll have to drink in moderation…"Deep, soul-stirring sigh.
I'd knew they'd say that.
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