ZUCCHINI RISOTTO

I made stuffed zucchini a few days ago and had to core the inside of the zucchini. I saved its meaty core for later use.  Looking in my cupboard and refrigerator, I found the following:

zucchini

arborio rice

tomato juice from last time I made diet chicken caccitore

mushroooms from a few days ago

I love the silky creaminess and that comfort food feeling of risotto.  Some people stay away from making risotto because they think it's difficult to make.  Risotto, I think, is relatively easy. The trick is to pour the liquid into the rice a little at a time and to keep stirring, stirring, stirring.

So here is the recipe:

3 1/2 C chicken or vegetable broth (low sodium if possible)

1/2 C tomato juice (can be substituted with tomato paste and 1/2 c water mixed)

1 T olive oil

1 small onion - chopped

zucchini chopped (I used the core but any parts can be used - about 4 small zucchinis)

1/2 C dried white wine

1 1/3 C arborio rice

1/4 C sun dried tomatoes - chopped

1/2 C chopped parsley

1/4 C mushrooms - chopped

1/2 tsp dried marjoram

2 T grated Parmesan cheese

salt, pepper 


In a medium pan, combine broth and tomato juice; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer.
Meanwhile,  in a medium non-stick pan, heat oil. Saute onions until soft. Add zucchini and wine, cook until zucchini is softened, about 3 minutes. Add sun dried tomatoes, parsley, mushrooms and marjoram. Add rice, stirring about 1 minute.


Add 1 cup of broth mixture to the rice and stir until all liquid is absorbed.  Continue adding broth, 1/2 c at a time, stirring until broth is absorbed before adding more broth. Repeat until all liquid is used and the rice is tender. Total cooking time should be 25 - 30 minutes. 
Stir in cheese and salt and pepper. Serve at once and garnish with parsley if desired. 


makes about 6 to 7 servings


I like eating this as a meal with fresh lettuce and maybe hummus.  But chicken or fish will also go well together. 

SOUPS ARE GREAT FOR USING UP YOUR LEFT-OVERS

A few nights ago, I entertained some Japanese college students who graduated from our local college.  I wanted to cook a typical American meal for them.  So I grilled outside.  As usual, I cooked what seemed to be enough for the entire graduating class! 

So this is what I had left over:

grilled chicken breasts

grilled salmon

grilled vegetables which consisted of: eggplants, zucchini, summer squash, portabello mushrooms, asparagus, onions

Watercress (tossed some in with my salad)

The following evening, we ate the left-overs just as they were, and it was delicious.

However, it didn't feel all that exciting to repeat it again the following night. So, I made soup.  No name to this soup because it's just a combination of left-overs.  I suppose you could call it LeftOvers Soup?

You can make this soup with any left over meat and vegetables you have.  They don't have to be grilled. But I have to say, the grilled vegetables definitely add to the taste.

So here is the recipe.  By the way, I should mention that all the above ingredients are organic, including salmon .  Yes, organic farm raised salmon; not wild caught which threatens our sustainability. And certainly not plain "farm raised" where the fish are fed 46% chicken pieces, live in pretty much stagnant water with poor filtration, and they have to shoot pink die into them so they look like salmon because these fish have lost their original natural pink coloring. I would encourage everyone to try to purchase these organic farm raised. They are absolutely delicious! But if they are not available where you live, then wild caught is definitely the second best choice.

32 oz chicken or vegetable broth

All the left-over items listed above - all chopped (quantity not specified.

Fresh tomato - chopped

2 T  tomato paste (or more if you'd like)

1 T oregano - dry

1 T basil - dry  (you could use fresh oregano and basil if you prefer)

salt / pepper

Parmesan cheese (optional)

Pour broth into a medium size soup pot and begin heating. Add chopped left-overs and tomato. Stir. Add tomato soup and stir. Taste. Add more as you'd like. Add oregano and basil and salt and pepper. Let it simmer.

You can sprinkle with parmesan cheese just before serving.

Because of the salmon, it tasted almost like New England clam chowder. 

I got 4 healthy servings out of it.

Last might's spaghetti? LoMein tonight.

Italian to Chinese

I had spaghetti last night, and had enough cooked pasta left over for about 4 people.  Since it's only my daughter and I, I decided to transform this Italian dinner to Chinese, and we could both take left overs with us to work the next day for lunch.                                  Opening the refrigerator and looking inside, I found steamed snow peas, 1/2 chicken breast and thin fried tofu.  Perfect combo for a nice tasty Lo Mein.  So, it's not exactly the Chinese take-out Lo Mein, but I think this is a much healthier version.  It has less salt, no MSG added, and it's much less expensive! 

Ingredients:

Olive or peanut or coconut oil to coat a frying pan

1 clove minced garlic or 1 tsp already minced garlic

1 tsp grated fresh ginger (if you don't have this, you can skip it)

Chopped steamed snow peas (or any other leftover vegetables)

1/2 shredded or cut up cooked chicken breast (or any other leftover meats)

Cooked left over pasta

Soy sauce to taste

dash of Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

Sesame Oil to taste

Cayenne or chili pepper to taste

Heat oil in pan with garlic and ginger. Add vegetables and meats. Stir fry until heated.  Add pasta and toss. Lower the heat from medium high to medium low so pasta won't burn onto the bottom of the pan. Add soy sauce, worcestershire sauce to taste. Add salt and pepper. Sprinkle a little of sesame oil. Keep tasting as you add these sauces to get the taste you want. Sprinkle with hot pepper if you wish.

Enjoy!