bison ragu with risotto

in balitmore we have the benefit of a very good local bison farm, gunpowder bison & trading company. bison is an excellent protein. delicious, and lower in fat than beef. the bison at gunpowder is raised hormone free, which means it's even better for you. they deliver, so check out their website!

this is my standard ragu starter, with bison thrown in. i find that it's easier (and cheaper) to make sauce from scratch at home, then to read through the long lists of ingredients on the backs of the jars in the grocery store aisles. plus, my sauce tastes better.

you could eat this over pasta, but why not give risotto a try...it's a better pairing than you think...


ingredients:
1/2 large onion, finely diced
2 large bunches of basil, leaves sliced and stems chopped
salt
olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, very thinly sliced
2 cans san marzano tomatoes (28 oz. each)
1 pound ground bison
1.5 cups arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock - Pacific brand is gluten-free
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (use a microplane if you have one)


directions:
to prep: finely dice your onion, chop your basil stems and slice your basil leaves, and very thinly slice your garlic.

add olive oil (about 2 tablespoons) to a large pan and saute the onion, basil stems, and garlic over medium heat until soft. add the bison and saute until browned. if you'd like you can drain off some of he fat, but bison tends to be less fatty than beef. add the tomatoes (be sure to pick through these with your fingers and pull out any skins and any of the basil they pack them with) and their juices and break them up with the back of a wooden spoon. simmer while you are prepping the risotto.

in a small pot heat the stock over low heat. you just need to keep it warm throughout the cooking process.

in a large pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat (it's better if this is lower than you think it should be...so if you are unsure, turn the heat down) add the onion and some salt and sweat the onions until they are glassy. add the rice and stir until it smells nutty, then add the wine. stir until the liquid is incorporated, and then add 1/2 cup of the stock. stir and let the liquid plump the rice. continue adding the stock, 1/2 cup at a time, until all but 1/2 cup is incorporated. (be sure to stir the rice regularly, and don't let it get too dry...the more you stir it, the more the starches will break down, which is what makes that beautifully creamy sauce.) once there is 1/2 cup of stock remaining, add in the cheese, stir, and then the last 1/2 cup of the stock. turn off the heat and let the residual heat help the rice absorb the remaining stock.


serve the bison ragu over the risotto and prepare to be swept away to a wonderful land where your tastebuds dance and bask in the sun.


notes:
as a recent gluten-free eater, risotto has become a staple in our household. i find that it tastes good alone, and also with heaping gobs of sauce. this would be good with any red sauce, and the red sauce could be made with beef, chicken, turkey, or even lamb or veal. look for whatever is fresh and local to you.

marsala mushroom risotto

everything about this title sounds delicious. i love marsala wine, especially sweet marsala, and often use it even though a recipe calls for dry. it immediately imparts a flavor that would take hours of careful reducing and tweaking to otherwise come up with. risotto, as you have probably guessed by now, is a staple in our house...and since it's gluten-free, it's being eaten even more often! mushrooms are being slowly introduced around these parts because my husband was never too fond of them. they are growing on him, however, so you will likely notice them showing up more and more.

i have posted several recipes for risotto, and i swear each is my favorite, but then i create another and i fall in love all over again. this is an excellent vegetarian option, you don't even notice that there is no meat in the dish because it's so hearty. i used red wine to make this beacuse...well, that's what i had open. it tasted great, but it does color the rice slightly (as you can see in the photo). if you prefer a more pure visual experience, go with white wine. also, in full disclosure, i used chicken stock to make this, but veggie stock is just as good (though, it too will color the rice slightly).

ingredients for the risotto:
1.5 cups arborio rice
4 cups stock (veggie or chicken) - Pacific brand is gluten-free
1/2 cup wine (red or white)
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (use a microplane if you have one)
salt

ingredients for the mushrooms:
1 package of cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
4 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked and stems discarded
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
splash (maybe 1/4 cup) of sweet marsala wine
salt
pepper

directions:
in a small pot heat the stock over low heat. you just need to keep it warm throughout the cooking process.

in a large pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat (it's better if this is lower than you think it should be...so if you are unsure, turn the heat down) add the onion and some salt and sweat the onions until they are glassy. add the rice and stir until it smells nutty, then add the wine. stir until the liquid is incorporated, and then add 1/2 cup of the stock. stir and let the liquid plump the rice. continue adding the stock, 1/2 cup at a time, until all but 1/2 cup is incorporated. (be sure to stir the rice regularly, and don't let it get too dry...the more you stir it, the more the starches will break down, which is what makes that beautifully creamy sauce.) once there is 1/2 cup of stock remaining, add in the cheese, stir, and then the last 1/2 cup of the stock. turn off the heat and let the residual heat help the rice absorb the remaining stock.

while the risotto is cooking...

heat the butter and oil (measurements for the mushrooms) in a small pan and once melted add the mushrooms and a pinch of salt and the leaves of thyme. stir until the mushrooms start to go soft and absorb some of the butter and oil and then add in the marsala. stir through until some of the liquid is reduced/absorbed by the mushrooms.

top the risotto with the mushroom mixture. enjoy!

notes:
the thyme and mushrooms go really well together, but if you'd like to add a different herb some of these would work: sage, parsley, rosemary, or a herbes de provence blend.

chicken and risotto milanese

i love the flavors of italy, and find that i'm most open to exploring dishes from that country than from any other. i think the reason is that italians don't seem to be rigid with their culinary traditions...they are open to exploration, and i find that encouraging.

this is a dish i've had several times in various restaurants over the years. i've seen countless recipes for it here and there, and have even cooked several of them. however, my take is simple and light, which is what i love about cooking with lemon and basil. i hope you enjoy it as much as i do!

ingredients for the risotto:
1.5 cups arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
salt

ingredients for the chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup panko bread crumbs
zest of one lemon
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, sliced into ribbons
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
olive oil
salt and pepper

special equipment:
a meat pounder
plastic wrap

directions:
in a small pot heat the chicken stock and the saffron over low heat. you just need to keep it warm throughout the cooking process.

in a large pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat (it's better if this is lower than you think it should be...so if you are unsure, turn the heat down) add the onion and some salt and sweat the onions until they are glassy. add the rice and stir until it smells nutty, then add the wine. stir until the liquid is incorporated, and then add 1/2 cup of the stock. stir and let the liquid plump the rice. continue adding the chicken stock, 1/2 cup at a time, until all but 1/2 cup is incorporated. (be sure to stir the rice regularly, and don't let it get too dry...the more you stir it, the more the starches will break down, which is what makes that beautifully creamy sauce.) once there is 1/2 cup of stock remaining, add in the cheese, stir, and then the last 1/2 cup of the stock. turn off the heat and let the residual heat help the rice absorb the remaining stock.

while the risotto is cooking...

trim the chicken breasts of any fat and tendons, and then using a sharp knife, slice them in half lengthwise so that you have two very thin chicken pieces. place one piece between two sheets of plastic wrap, and then pound with the meat pounder until it is very thin. remove, sprinkle with salt and pepper and then set aside. repeat with the remaining three pieces of chicken.

in a small shallow bowl mix the panko, lemon zest, basil, parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper together until well-blended. break the egg into another shallow bowl and whisk well. dredge the chicken first in the egg, then in the panko mixture. make sure that each piece of chicken gets an equal amount of the lemon zest and the basil.

heat olive oil (about 2 tablespoons to start) in a large nonstick pan over medium high heat. place two of the chicken pieces into the pan and cook until lightly browned on the first side, then flip and cook until browned on the second side (because of how thin they are, they will likely not need more than 4 minutes a side...but test their doneness by seeing how they bounce back when you poke them). repeat with the remaining two chicken pieces.

serve over the risotto, and sprinkle with more basil and cheese to taste. enjoy!

notes:
this dish is my take on a classic...there are ingredients here that aren't commonly used (or at least weren't until recently) in italy...like panko. but i find that making things the way i think they taste best means i'm always happy with my food, and i'm sure you will be too. the chicken is simple and clean. the risotto is steeped with the exotic flavors (and colors) that saffron imparts...they would be good separate, but are excellent together.

risotto florentine

i know what you'll say; "courtney, using cheese and seafood together is a major 'no-no' in italian cooking, what are you thinking!?" but the reality is that once you know why the italians don't usually pair seafood and cheese, you can carefully plan meals that use both ingredients without even angering mario batalli.

in fact, speaking of mario, he is the one who explained the reason in such clarity that i not only understood the logic behind it, but instantly knew i needed to challenge the rule. as it turns out, the reasons italians are so strict about this particular culinary rule is that they have never wanted to overwhelm the delicate flavor of seafood with the more robust flavors of cheese. makes sense, i'll give them that.

however, since the majority of the cheese in this dish lives in the luxurious rice on which said delicate seafood rests, i believe i have found a loophole in even the most stringent italian grandmother's rule book. the flavors of the plump shrimp and scallops are fresh and light, the spinach is earthy and slightly spicy on the tongue, and the rice...oh the rice...it's perfectly salted and has a bit of a tangy kick from a double dose of the wine in the early stages of simmering. i'm sure you'll love this dish.

ingredients:
1 onion, finely chopped
1.5 cups of good arborio rice (or other suitable risotto rice)
4 cups of good chicken stock
1 cup white wine (the kind isn't important, but it should be something you would drink as the flavor will intensify)
a chunk or block of good parmagianno reggianno (or 1/2 cup grated parmesan)
2 tablespoons of butter
olive oil
5 oz. baby spinach, cleaned and the ends picked
1/2 # shrimp, peeled and cleaned
1/2 # scallops, peeled and cleaned
zest of one lemon
fresh nutmeg for grating
red pepper flakes (just a pinch)

directions:
in a pot on the back burner, heat all of the chicken stock on low heat just to warm it through.

heat about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat in a large pan. add spinach to the pan and sautee lightly until it's gone a deeper green and begun to wilt. remove to a plate and wipe out pan.

heat the same pan over medium heat and add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the butter. while it melts chop your onion and then add to the pan. saute the onions until they are glassy and clear, but don't brown them. if they begin to brown remove the pan from the heat and reduce the flame before continuing to cook. once the onions are glassy add in the rice and stir for about a minute until the smell goes all nutty. once that happens add in one cup of white wine and stir until absorbed.

once the wine is absorbed, add 1/2 cup of the stock at a time and stir through the rice and then leave it for a minute or two to absorb. you will know when to add more because the rice will look like it's drying out. you want it to always have a creamy liquid surrounding it, so be sure to keep that up. don't wander away from it, but it's ok to not stir it for a few minutes at a time.

which is good, because at this point you need to prep the seafood. heat a smaller pan over high heat with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. when the oil is hot, swirl it to coat the bottom of the pan. pat the scallops dry and salt and pepper both sides. place them into the searing hot pan, and jiggle them really gently so that they don't stick. once you have them all in, leave them for about a minute and a half, and then flip them. leave this side in for about 30 seconds and then remove them to a plate.

place the shrimp in a small bowl and zest the lemon onto them. you want these to taste fresh, but not like lemonade, so don't go nuts with the zest. also add salt and pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes that you crumble with the tips of your fingers. add just enough olive oil to moisten them slightly and then add them to the same pan that you cooked the scallops in. these will take only moments to cook. once they go pink, flip them, and then remove them almost immediately. there is nothing worse than an overcooked shrimp.

you should be cooking the seafood while adding stock to your risotto, so at this point your rice should be just about done. once you have 1/2 cup of stock remaining, grate about 1/2 cup of the cheese into the rice and stir it through. add the remaining stock, stir it through, and leave the heat on for about 30 seconds. turn the heat off and let the rice sit for about 1 minute and then stir.

assemble these by placing rice on the place, a bed of spinach on top of that, and then a mixture of scallops and shrimp to the very top. you can grate more cheese on the top of the entire dish if you wish. enjoy!

notes:
this would be equally good in the winter or summer, though it does have more of a fresh summer leaning. though not exactly healthy, this is delicious and light tasting. it should serve four comfortably.

if preparing this gluten-free be sure to check the label on the chicken stock, i use swanson's or safeway brand which are both gluten-free.