70: Rosemary Flat Iron Steak / Tomato Mushroom Risotto

I ended up with about a cup of leftover sauce from the Tuscan Veal Stew the other night, and I didn’t want such a flavorful sauce to go to waste. I had a couple flat iron steaks I needed to use, and found a cup of dry risotto in the cupboard. I also had two cups of chicken broth, so I came up with this dinner. I love nights when all I have to do is look through what I have and can come up with something blog-worthy.

Ingredients and Directions:

2 flat iron steaks

1 cup dry risotto

1/4 cup shallots, diced

1 cup parmesan cheese

1 cup leftover sauce (you’ll have to improvise here)

2 cups chicken stock

1 cup wild mushrooms, stemmed and sliced

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped

Olive oil

Butter

Salt + pepper

Risotto—Bring leftover sauce and stock to a low simmer in a pan. Meanwhile, sauté mushrooms in olive oil with a little butter, salt and pepper. Turn off heat on mushrooms and set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and butter in a pot over medium heat for a few minutes. Sweat shallots in this mixture for 3-4 minutes, and then add the risotto to the pot. Sauté for a few more minutes or until risotto is light golden brown. Turn heat to medium high, and add stock a 1/4 cup at a time, stirring continuously. You know you need to add more stock when the mixture in the pot seems dry, meaning the risotto has soaked up all the liquid, usually about 5 minutes. The whole process will take about 30 minutes. You must stir continuously, or your risotto will not come out nice. Stir in mushrooms and cheese for one minute before serving.

Steaks—Heat a dry pan on medium high heat for 3-5 minutes. Dredge steaks through a mixture of salt, pepper, and rosemary. Press the seasoning into the steaks. Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and let warm for 1-2 minutes. Sear steaks on each side for 3 minutes per side for medium rare, depending on thickness. Our steaks were just over half an inch thick, so they didn’t need to cook long. Plate steaks up against risotto mound on plate.

Enjoy!!

40: Chicken & Prosciutto Risotto / Leeks / Collard Greens

Yum, yum ,yum. Here is another recipe from the Cooking for Two book by Jessica Strand. Her tag line: Fresh, salty, creamy, rich; what else is there to say? Yup, I couldn’t have aid it better myself. I forgot to add the mascarpone cheese, so I don’t think it’s quite as creamy, and, honestly, it’s really not that salty. It is, however, incredibly tasty and takes comfort food to another level.

The trick to a good risotto is of course the way you stir it. Don’t be lazy and just push it around in the pot. If your arm doesn’t hurt, you’re not stirring enough. Put some love into it!

(You may notice I busted out some different plates for this dinner. This is also the 40th recipe I have shared with you.)

Ingredients and Directions:

1/2 pound chicken, diced

1/2 cup prosciutto, sliced into small strips

2 large collard greens, stemmed and chopped

3 cups chicken broth

1 leek, thinly sliced

1 cup Arborio rice

1/4 cup dry white wine

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Parsley and mint, minced for garnish

Blanch collard greens in a pot of boiling salted water for about 90 seconds – helps reduce the bitterness. Drain in a colander and then push the water out with the back of a spoon until dry. Set aside.

Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to very low and keep warm.

Meanwhile, sauté chicken in a small pan with salt and pepper until just about cooked. Turn off heat, and set aside. Don’t worry, it will finish cooking as the pan cools off. Plus, you’re going to add it to hot risotto for a bit at the end.

Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in large heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir 2 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until absorbed, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the hot chicken broth. Reduce heat and simmer on medium-low heat until absorbed, stirring frequently. Add 1/4 cup of broth at a time, allowing broth to be absorbed before adding more and stirring frequently until rice is just tender and mixture is creamy, about 28 to 30 minutes. You may need to adjust heat to medium for last 10 minutes if your risotto doesn't seem to getting creamy by this point.

Add the collard greens, chicken, and prosciutto for final 1-2 minutes of stirring. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish.

Enjoy!