Asparagus and Broccoli Risotto

Risotto isn't something I would otherwise make, but we had an open container of vegetable broth and its something that had been in the works in the back of my mind so I decided to give it a try. I know usually people think that risotto is something that requires a lot of work and time but it really doesn't! It's more sophisticated than just your average pot of pasta, and much more inviting in taste. I decided to use the vegetables I already had in the kitchen, but did have to go out and buy a specific type of rice. I used arborio rice because from what I had read online, that was the perfect type of grain for risotto. Its not entirely a one pot wonder, but mostly easy on the dishes as well.

Ingredients
15 stalks asparagus
1/2 head of broccoli
1/2 white onion (diced)
5 cups vegetable broth
4 tablespoons butter (room temp)
salt to taste
pepper to taste
parmesan reggiano cheese


In a medium sized pot, pour in your vegetable broth - keep it on a low simmer and that is all it needs to do until the end of the rest of the procedure. In a large pan, add in 4 tablespoons of butter and let it melt. Slowly and steadily let that happen, you want to keep an eye on it. Don't turn the heat more than medium-low otherwise your butter will brown. Once the butter seems to be melting away, add in your onions and let them soak in the madness. You want your onions to become clear before you add in your rice. CORRECT! The uncooked rice goes into this pot. (weird, right? just watch!) As your rice cooks amongst the butter and the onions wait for it to turn brown. While the rice is browning, start blanching your vegetables. (boiling water, pinch of salt and just let the vegetables turn bright green (8-10 minutes), then throw them in an bowl of cold water and some ice to stop the cooking process)

rice is browning with the onions

rice fluffing with broth

Once you've noticed the rice is brown, start laddling in your vegetable broth, about half a cup at a time. Each time you add in the broth, mix everything around. Don't add more broth until the previous amount has been completely absorbed. Make sure to keep mixing everything around, things can easily get stuck to the bottom and to the sides of the pan. Once all your broth has been added into the rice, give it a taste. You want the rice to be al-dente; meaning still have a bit of a bite but definitely no crunch. Once it has reached that point, you want to add in your vegetables and give it a coating of cheese.

Zucchini Pasta, Baked Tofu and a Spicy Peanut Sauce

It is one of my 2016 resolutions to start blogging more and giving more attention to sharing what I cook on a regular basis. So here we are, week three (four?) of this new year and this will be the start of a blogging storm. This recipe is something I am extremely proud of. I've been saying I want to give zucchini pasta a try, but I've been hesitant because zucchini as a vegetable isn't something I am a fan of (one of my closest friends from college (Sunita) calls it "za-ku-nee" and after that I couldn't take the vegetable seriously anymore)

My roommate was given a veggetti as a gift, and we finally took the time tonight to put it to the test. Let me tell you, this thing is magic. It was not only extremely easy to use, but was also easy to cleanup as well - definitely something important when you have a barely working dishwasher. I would not recommend using just a regular peeler and knife to make the zucchini spirals because it'll be difficult to maintain thickness and the consistency of length of each spiral. You'll be at risk of easily cutting a finger, or at least scraping a nail with the peeler. But, if you're game for the challenge then all the power to you!

I put together this recipe fairly quickly and I think it is great for a weekday. Personally, the best part about it is that there are not that many moving parts; meaning, you aren't multitasking with three different pans going on three different burners with 6 different bowls filling up your counter. So here I am sharing with you my recipe for zucchini pasta with baked tofu, in a spicy peanut sauce.

Ingredients
1 package cubed super firm tofu
2 zucchini
1/2 red onion - chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 1/2 tablespoons peanut butter (grab this from the fridge and keep it out, it'll help loosen it up!)
2 tablespoons sriracha
2 1/2 table spoons honey

Since I am vegetarian, tofu is something I've come to love. Whether I am baking it, or frying it, or marinating it - I know its something thats versatile and doesn't need to be worried about too much. For this dish, I planned on baking it. I had a package of super firm, that was already cubed. I drained the water BUT did nothing else to remove any water the tofu has already absorbed. I preheated my oven to 350, I used on a cookie sheet with some aluminum foil on top sprayed generously with cooking spray I layed down the cubes in no specific arrangement but just making sure each cube was separated. Again generously spraying the tops of each cube with cooking spray. Expect these to be in the oven for about 12-15 minutes before you flip them, and then they'll be in there for another 12-15. I personally love baking my tofu because I don't need to sit there and wait hours for al the water to drain out because the high heat in the oven makes them sweat it out and the water being released also helps them get that perfect golden  brown color.  Make sure to set your timer, if you let them sit in the oven for too long - they will get dry, crunchy and very chewy.

Into a bowl, start spiraling through your zucchini. Be very careful! The internal blades of the tool are extremely sharp, and you could easily cut yourself without realizing. I used two whole zucchinis, I portioned it out assuming my rooommate and I could each eat an entire one. After I finished one zucchini, I just took a knife and chopped twice through the spirals just to try to get them to a more manageable length. I spiraled the second zucchini and did the chop with it again.

This is a great time to check your tofu since you're more than halfway done!

In a small mixing bowl, add all of the ingredients for your sauce. Its going to require a little bit of mixing because of how thick the peanut butter is, and how you want to have all of the sauces become the same consistency. Just let that hang out while you get the rest of your dish together!

In a pan, with about two teaspoons of oil on medium to high heat, add in your onions. Once they are sizzling up a little bit, add in your garlic. Let them enjoy the heat and then throw in your baked tofu. Give them a toss and then pour in your sauce. Turn the heat off and give everything a toss and then add in your zucchini spirals. You don't need your zucchini to be in there for very long, maybe a minute at MAX because you just want to heat it through. If the zucchini stays in the heat too long it'll start releasing water, and that's not what you want!

Give everything a mix so that the sauce is well incorporated all over the tofu and the zucchini and make sure to add the leftover sauce thats in the pan into the bowl that you're using to serve this!