Yummies: Volume 7

Last night I really felt like cooking something, but I hadn't been to the grocery store or farmers market this past weekend so I wasn't sure what resources were available to me. After a glance in my fridge and pantry, I realized that I had enough vegetables (that, frankly, needed to be consumed that night or they would start rotting) and starches to make some kind of pasta. But pasta wasn't enough work for me; I needed something more involved. I started chopping vegetables and figured it would come to me once I started cooking. I started sauteing, and my roommate walked in the kitchen and asked me what I was making for dinner. "I'm not exactly sure," I said. "Just cooking everything I have." Oh," she said, "everything but the kitchen sink!"


Kitchen Sink Risotto

Ingredients:

• an assortment of vegetables (i.e. mushroom, bell pepper (any color, but green or purple is best), onion, zucchini, scallions, spinach, squash, etc.)
• two garlic cloves
• 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
  
• 1 cup of chicken or vegetable broth
• orzo (wheat or regular, but I prefer wheat)
• Israeli cous cous (optional)
• 1/4 cup black olives (optional)
  
• 2 Tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

• heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat
  
• heat a pot of water to boil, with a little bit of kosher salt
  
• chop garlic and add to olive oil, saute for a couple of minutes before it gets brown
• chop all vegetables into small, bite size pieces
  
• add the harder vegetables first (pepper, zucchini) and saute for a few minutes
• start adding the softer vegetables (onion, mushroom, scallion) and saute
• add the spinach and saute for a minute before it wilts too much
• if using black olives, chop them and add with the spinach
  
• by now, your water is probably boiling so add the orzo (and/or Israeli cous cous) and a teaspoon of olive oil - let it boil for only about 4 minutes, just to soften it up a bit but not so it's fully cooked
• add 2/3 cup of chicken or vegetable broth to the vegetables and lower the heat to let it simmer
• strain the orzo, then add to the skillet with vegetables
• add the remaining broth, and cover over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the orzo is cooked and the broth has absorbed
• add salt and pepper to taste, and Parmesan cheese.
  
• stir to mix, and serve hot!

Notes:

• When using wheat pasta, it takes a bit longer to cook. This is why you soften it up a little bit first in the boiling water. If you're using regular pasta, then you can just add it dry to the vegetable mixture with all of the broth at once.
• Israeli cous cous is a great orzo substitute - or supplement. I used both because I had a little bit of both and I wanted to make a larger serving. You can find Israeli cous cous in the ethnic section of most grocery stores.
• The black olives make the taste a little more Mediterranean, and they go great with the spinach and zucchini.
• The vegetables can be freshly bought, or they can be on their last legs - as long as they're ripe and in good shape them throw them in!