Life as a Dill

Mushroom Risotto

This was good; I liked it more than Denver, who is not really a fan of risotto. Looks like I'm packing all of the leftovers this week :)

MUSHROOM RISOTTO (Bon Appétit, November 2008) 6 cups low salt chicken broth 1 stick butter, divided in half 6 T shallots 1 clove garlic, minced 12 oz. assorted wild mushrooms (chanterelle, crimini, or shiitake) 1 3/4 cups arborio rice 1 cup dry white wine 1/3 cup chopped Italian parsley 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (plus more to taste) Simmer broth in medium saucepan and keep warm. Melt ½ stick butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons shallots, garlic, and the mushrooms. Sauté until mushrooms are soft (about 10 minutes). Season with salt and pepper. Melt ½ stick butter in another heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons shallots and sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add rice and stir for 1 minute. Add wine and stir until almost dry, about 4 minutes. Add 1 cup warm broth and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Repeat with another cup of broth. Add 2 cups broth and simmer 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add final 2 cups broth, mushroom mixture, parsley, and 1/3 cup parmesan cheese. Simmer until creamy and rice is tender, but still firm to bite, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Mushroom Risotto

This was good; I liked it more than Denver, who is not really a fan of risotto. Looks like I'm packing all of the leftovers this week :)

MUSHROOM RISOTTO (Bon Appétit, November 2008)

6 cups low salt chicken broth
1 stick butter, divided in half
6 T shallots
1 clove garlic, minced
12 oz. assorted wild mushrooms (chanterelle, crimini, or shiitake)
1 3/4 cups arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup chopped Italian parsley
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (plus more to taste)

Simmer broth in medium saucepan and keep warm. Melt ½ stick butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons shallots, garlic, and the mushrooms. Sauté until mushrooms are soft (about 10 minutes). Season with salt and pepper.

Melt ½ stick butter in another heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons shallots and sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add rice and stir for 1 minute.

Add wine and stir until almost dry, about 4 minutes. Add 1 cup warm broth and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Repeat with another cup of broth. Add 2 cups broth and simmer 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add final 2 cups broth, mushroom mixture, parsley, and 1/3 cup parmesan cheese. Simmer until creamy and rice is tender, but still firm to bite, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Bad haircut

Seriously, I could have done a better job than this.

Me

Thanksgiving

We had a nice and low-key Thanksgiving this year. In addition to a fabulous meal, we enjoyed the last-minute company of friends James and Kaylyn, who brought a yummy pumpkin pie over. Our meal turned out great! My favorite (and Denver's too) turned out being the Streuseled Sweet Potato Casserole from Cooking Light pictured above. I will be making this dish for many Thanksgivings to come! Glad that we have about half a casserole dish of leftovers to enjoy this weekend. The crockpot turkey breast was succulent. Roasted turkeys never taste as good. I'll take my juicy, slow-cooked bird any day. We're staying away from the Black Friday crowds today, probably catching some 30 Rock on Netflix and eating leftovers. A lovely day indeed. :)

Streuseled Sweet Potato Casserole

We had a nice and low-key Thanksgiving this year. In addition to a fabulous meal, we enjoyed the last-minute company of friends James and Kaylyn, who brought a yummy pumpkin pie over.

Our meal turned out great! My favorite (and Denver's too) turned out being the Streuseled Sweet Potato Casserole from Cooking Light pictured above. I will be making this dish for many Thanksgivings to come! Glad that we have about half a casserole dish of leftovers to enjoy this weekend.

The crockpot turkey breast was succulent. Roasted turkeys never taste as good. I'll take my juicy, slow-cooked bird any day.

We're staying away from the Black Friday crowds today, probably catching some 30 Rock on Netflix and eating leftovers. A lovely day indeed. :)

Holiday week

 

Just went shopping for our Thanksgiving feast tomorrow.  On the menu:

 

Pumpkin Pie Martinis

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast & Gravy

Streuseled Sweet Potato Casserole

Smashed Red Potatoes with Garlic

Tangerine-Cranberry Sauce

Apple Pie (Grandma’s)

Gotta run to work for a little while in a bit, and then I need to start cooking and cleaning!

 

Denver and I had a fabulous time at the Met last night.  We saw La Damnation de Faust, my favorite opera to date!  Visually, it was spectacular.  I’m not the best judge of operatic voices (most sound great to me), but everything melded together into a haunting, dazzling, and surreal production.  It is so great that we are only an hour away from performances like these.

 

Photos of the Thanksgiving feast to come J

 

Recital

Denver and Jon Leonard of "the Hellcats" gave an awesome recital at West Point today! I am so in love with my hubby :)

Roasted Butternut Squash & Shallot Soup and Beer-Cheese Bread

This soup and bread were both great on a cold and blustery day like today! It only got up to 29 at our house this afternoon. Brrrrrr... We each added a dollop of sour cream to the soup, which as you can see had a lovely golden color. The beer bread was interesting-- used a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest that was left over from a few weeks ago as the lager of choice. We still have half a loaf left to enjoy tomorrow. Overall it was a lazy day. I watched the Ohio State-Michigan game while Denver, not the sports fanatic, took a nap in front of the TV. At dinnertime we started watching season 1 of 30 Rock through the Xbox-- gotta love the new partnership between Microsoft and Netflix. Denver has a recital tomorrow, and then a 2-day work week begins for me. We still don't have Thanksgiving plans, but I did buy a turkey breast to prepare in the crock pot. We'll probably just end up eating and being lazy with the cats.

Roasted Butternut Squash & Shallot Soup and Beer-Cheese Bread

This soup and bread were both great on a cold and blustery day like today! It only got up to 29 at our house this afternoon. Brrrrrr...

We each added a dollop of sour cream to the soup, which as you can see had a lovely golden color. The beer bread was interesting-- used a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest that was left over from a few weeks ago as the lager of choice. We still have half a loaf left to enjoy tomorrow.

Overall it was a lazy day. I watched the Ohio State-Michigan game while Denver, not the sports fanatic, took a nap in front of the TV. At dinnertime we started watching season 1 of 30 Rock through the Xbox-- gotta love the new partnership between Microsoft and Netflix.

Denver has a recital tomorrow, and then a 2-day work week begins for me. We still don't have Thanksgiving plans, but I did buy a turkey breast to prepare in the crock pot. We'll probably just end up eating and being lazy with the cats.