It's All About the...

Recipes.

After a few false starts, I've finally figured out what this blog should be about, and that's mostly recipes (with a little bit of bad hippie behavior and fun stories thrown into the mix). It took a while to figure it out--I finished my Master's Degree at Goddard with a thesis that explores novel, self-perpetuating business ownership structures as a way to perpetuate and sustain local business ownership. I moved back to Wyoming after a stint in purgatory Kansas. I got married, and my now-husband and I closed on a new home two weeks before our wedding. There's lots of things that I could talk about within this space, but nothing really felt right, until now, until this idea--recipes from the Farmer's Market, cooking locally in a hardiness-zone-challenged climate.

Riverton, where I am now, kicks off the Farmer's Market season for the state. In my wanderings at the weekly market (3 blocks from my house--yay!), these early sessions seem to be less about the farmers and more about the baked goods, jewelry, and street food. Not that I don't love me some street-vendor tacos or strawberry-rhubarb pie, because I do, but finding the fresh veggies can be somewhat of a challenge. I know what grows when, and I know that now is the time to harvest some very good stuff: rhubarb, asparagus, radishes, lettuces, spinach, kale, leeks, garlic scapes, mushrooms. But it's been hard to find, although when I do find it, the lines are pretty short. Which got me thinking--how many folks are there for the farmed goods and how many folks are there for the street food because they wouldn't know what to do with a vegetable if it bit them?

I admit--I haven't met a plant that I haven't been able to kill. I mean, yes, my parsley seems to be doing okay, but my cilantro, cucumber, and pepper plants are long dead, and the tomatoes and basil look like they'll kick it any day now. And while I recognize that I have issues in growing food (the yard's "soil" is actually dust, I have no idea how to water, the neighbor's dog is a digger, etc.), I can cook. And that's getting to be a lost art. I mean, why go to the Farmer's Market for veggies if they're going to go to waste? Why not get a Cajun shrimp wrap and a pie instead?

Here's why: Mushroom Risotto. It can be done, and it's so awesome, I had thirds and I HATE mushrooms.

What you need:

1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 pound of locally grown mushrooms--the plain white ones are fine, but the crimini/baby portabellas make it extra special
1 small onion
4 cloves garlic
1 cup arborio rice (sounds fancy, but it's not--you can buy it at Safeway)
2 teaspoons italian seasoning (or 1 teaspoon basil plus 1 teaspoon parsley with a pinch of oregano)
4 cups vegetable stock, warm*
Parmesan cheese

What to do with that list above to make food:

In a big saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over low heat, until the butter melts into the oil. If you want to be vegan here, use 3 Tablespoons of olive oil and skip the butter; keep in mind though that this is Wyoming, and butter consumption may be state-mandated. While you're butter and oil are getting warm and happy in the pan, dice up your onion fairly fine, and mince your garlic. Dump those into the butter/oil, and cook them over low heat until the onions start to look translucent. While that's underway, clean your 'shrooms--just wipe them with a damp paper towel. I like to pull the stems out of the caps, and mince the stems and throw them in with the onions to cook while I slice the caps, but it's up to you. Once you've got your 'shrooms sliced up, toss them in the pan--you'll want a single layer in the pan, so if you have more 'shrooms than pan bottom, split them up and cook them in batches. What you'll do is cook the 'shrooms with the onions and garlic, and cook them through a few stages: first, they'll release their liquid and make a soupy-looking mess. Keep cooking, because then they'll re-absorb all of that liquid. When the 'shrooms have reabsorbed their liquid, add in your arborio rice and stir it around until it's glossy and slick from the oil/butter. Add in your italian seasoning and give it a stir. Next, add in about a cup of your veggie stock and give everything a good stir. The rice will start to absorb the liquid, and when the liquid is almost absorbed completely, add another cup. Repeat until you're out of stock. The rice will cook for about 20 minutes, absorbing liquid and releasing its starch, becoming thick and creamy and awesome. Once the rice has absorbed all of the liquid and is thick, stir in some grated Parmesan cheese--about 1/4 to 1/2 a cup, depending on your preference for cheesy things. Again, if you're vegan, you can use nutritional yeast, which I'm not convinced is a good substitute for cheese, but that's what the vegans believe. Ladle it into a bowl, top it with more cheese if you please, and eat it up.

*Two notes about vegetable stock: I use Better Than Bouillon's vegetable stock base for this recipe. I add the appropriate amount of stock base to the rice, then use water from my tea kettle to make the risotto. You can use whatever stock you want. Also, if you use a gluten-free stock, this recipe will be gluten-free. Just check the stock, as some contain MSG or other forms of processed gluten.

There you have it. An impressive-sounding, tasty dinner that serves two or three generously as a main meal, or four to six people as a side (depending on how generous you are with your ladle). If you go the side dish route, this does make a really good pair to a nice rib-eye steak from Wyoming Custom Meats (all grass beef!) or from Clark's Meat House--both have booths at Riverton's Farmer's Market.