recipe: risotto, goat's cheese & proscuito

fridaynightdinnerbox 

main item + accompaniment + salad = three noodle boxes; a meal in three parts

The idea is simple enough, the meal packed in carry bags, paper towels for wiping fingers, no dishes required, dropped at your door on Friday afternoon to take the hassle of coming home to cook dinner, just pick up a bottle of vino on the way home, choose a good movie, & curl up on the couch. Job done.

In sitting down to type up the recipe, I thought I'd write about this aspect of fridaynightdinnerbox, the make-up I mean, because a lot of thought goes into choosing three items that can be regarded as separate dishes which also work in combination. Also, this week's combination was particularly good, so deserved mention because it was so tasty. The main item I like to serve plain, in this case the risotto. Delicious on its own anyway, the other ingredients are there to be added as required. The result is still a meal of your own making, but all the pieces are there for you to simply reheat & bring together the way you like them.

By way of constructing a dish descriptor then, this week's fridaynightdinnerbox contained:

#1) plain risotto, made with onions & garlic, thyme, white wine & chicken stock

#2) goat's cheese & roasted garlic potatoes (hasselbach), spring onions, proscuito, cranberries

#3) salad of mixed lettuce, toasted pumpkin & sesame seeds, lemon zest & cracked peppercorns

While I ate my salad separately, I did pick out the baby spinach leaves & add some toasted pinenuts to my risotto, just cos I could, though in theory, all three boxes could be mixed together, the hot creamy texture & flavour of the rice, sweet meaty proscuito & salty goast's cheese, the crunch of toasted seeds & the bitter green of salad leaves, with the slight zing of lemon at the end. Just think about that for a moment. Imagine all those flavours & textures & colours one by one & side by side, in your mouth, as you munch...nice aye?

While combination ingredients for both accompanying dishes is simple enough, I mean you add more of the things you like, less of those you don't, the hasselbach potatoes do need a little instruction & the risotto, although simple, requires attention to make sure it comes out just right. 

Ingredients: Hasselbach potatoes:

agria (roasting) potatoes, 
garlic, salt, olive oil

Method:

*set oven to 220

*crush garlic & infuse with olive oil, warmed for a few minutes for example

*whole baby potatoes or slice in 1/2, cutting it a thinly ridged back, as with garlic bread

*liberally brush the potatoes with garlic oil, separating the cuts where possible & season

*roast for 15 minutes, then give the pan  shake & rebrush oil everywhere, putting back into the oven for more roasting, timing will depend on size, but keep an eye on them, they are ready when golden brown outside & soft & steamy inside

-I broke these down further once roasted & tossed with baby spinach, together with the chevre & proscuito, which in turn was combined with the risotto, a splash of cream, lemon; yummy

Ingredients: Risotto:

aborio rice 

garlic/onion

butter/olive oil

thyme/bay/salt

white wine/chicken stock

Method:

*bring white wine & chicken stock to the boil, reduce to a simmer

*sweat the onions & garlic in olive oil & butter, thyme & bay, be generous with your oil

*add the rice, stir until the rice goes a little translucent, give it a cpl of minutes

*pour in a cupful of simmering stock/wine, & stir the rice

*when it's absorbed, repeat the process, until whats left is a creamy, separating type rice

*make sure the rice is al dente firm to the bite

From here, at home, I like to throw together a sauce then combine the risotto, cooked blanc & left in the fridge. It's a quick dinner. For me, the quality of the risotto is all important.  If the plain old risotto is actually amazing all by itself, well that's the place to start, isn't it?.