Vegetable Risotto

By now you probably know how much I love risotto. For this one, I used what I had on hand. A few mushrooms, some fresh zucchini and asparagus along with some frozen peas I had tucked away in the freezer just itching to be used up. As most of you I am sure, I've been glued to the television set all day and wanted to keep dinner simpler on this historical Inaugural day. Grilled pork chops, risotto, homemade applesauce, a garden salad and dinner was served. And for dessert.. spumoni with claret sauce..gotta have dessert!

5-6 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 medium shallot, diced fine
2 cups Arborio rice
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup fresh asparagus tips
1/2 cup finely chopped zucchini
3/4 cup thinly sliced mushrooms
3/4 cup frozen peas
2 TBLS chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
2 TBLS fresh basil
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
sea salt & ground pepper to taste



Heat broth in a medium saucepan and keep it warm. Melt butt in a larger saucepan. Once butter begins to foam, add shallots. Heat until soft. Add rice and mix well. When rice is coated with butter, add wine. Cook on medium heat until wine has evaporated. Stir in 2 ladles of chicken broth, or enough to cover the rice. Stir until broth has been absorbed. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding broth a little at a time, about 10 minutes. Add asparagus tips, zucchini, mushrooms and peas. Cook about 10 minutes longer until rice is done. The rice should be tender but firm to the bite. Remove pan from heat. Add basil, parsley, 2/3rds of cheese and 1 TBLS butter. Mix it all well. Season with sea salt & fresh ground pepper. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top if desired and serve.
You might also like to try wild mushroom risotto, lemon saffron risotto, or my lobster risotto. Yes, I'm really hooked on risotto's! Enjoy!

First Coarse.. Applesauce

Well I guess it's official.. it's Apple Harvest time here in New England. Does anything taste better than a crisp snappy apple when you've been out hiking in the cool autumn air? This was a perfect weekend to go apple picking and so we did! Still balmy temps here, so you didn't need to worry about crowds.. a great selection to choose from, and a lovely spot high in the hills with a wonderful view made this picking weekend a very special one for us.

I've been craving roast pork, with roast potatoes and homemade applesauce. I can always tell when the long hot sizzling days of August have just about come to an end.. and this urge just comes over me to make a nice autumn dinner. Pie & turnover recipes just hankering to be made, and the thought of apple butter, just warms me.

We had the orchards nearly to ourselves, and as we went about the task I couldn't help but think of what has happened over the years. The US agritourism seems surreal to me: around the country, migrant workers pick our food for low wages under bad conditions, but the well-to-do suburban families pile into minivans and RV's, drive long distances, and pay money to have their kids pick produce.

Picking apples or any fresh produce at 'Pick Your Own' farms, stands for me at least, a longing for a simpler time, when you could walk into an apple orchard and pick.. simply because they were there. Looking around at row after row of apple trees in the orchard, I had to wonder to myself what Johnny Appleseed would make of all this when he planted these first seeds with wide sprung hands so very long ago, but continued on with my picking, dreaming of what I would prepare with all these tasty jewels.

I knew the first thing I wanted to make was applesauce. I'm a little fussy when it comes to applesauce. I don't care for smooth texture and do enjoy the addition of cinnamon, so after trial and error came up with an applesauce I'm really pleased with. Flavored just right for us, with a consistency that's neither chunky nor smooth. More like coarse... first coarse, if you've never tried your hand at making applesauce before. So head to your local orchard, and start picking or Farmer's Market and then try this easy to prepare recipe. Enjoy!




50 apples - I used 30 Paula reds & 20 McIntosh
Water - enough to almost cover the apples
2 TBLS lemon juice
1/2 - 1 cup sugar (white or light brown)
3 TBLS cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
12 jelly jars- kept warmed

Wash, peel, core and slice apples. Put the apples into a large pan and almost cover with water and lemon juice. Cover. Bring to a light boil, but WATCH the pan, as apples swell, allowing your cover to fly off! Cook covered until apples become tender & start to fall apart with occasional stirring.. about 25 minutes.
When the apples are tender, transfer to collander and drain off excess water. Put all apple pulp back into your pan & mash with a slotted spoon. Add sugar(s) slowly, 1/2 cup at a time until dissolved, cinnamon and nutmeg, and continue to cook until sugar is dissolved and flavored to your taste. I used 2/3 cup light brown sugar with 1/3 cup white sugar.
Have your warmed jelly jars ready and spoon hot applesauce mixture into the jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Clean rims of jars, and apply seals and lids. Process jars in water bath canner 20 minutes. Remove and allow to cool before storing.