Sunday is without a doubt my favorite day of the week. I love waking up on Sunday mornings and just hanging around the house in my pj's, reading magazines, drinking coffee, hanging out with Durham and Jason. There is no morning so calm and comfortable to me. This kind of relaxing start to the day usually spawns the motivation to research and cook an elaborate dinner.
I really enjoy reading Saveur magazine. There are so many articles that touch on the history and cultural stories of food, rather than just focusing on the recipe. It is a nice holiday from the "save x amount of calories" type messages you see in other cooking magazines. The best part is that most of their recipes are healthy, yet food for food lovers is the sole focus of this publication.
A couple weeks ago, while perusing Saveur I came across two recipes that looked like they would go well together. One, was Stanley Tucci's mothers' recipe for risotto with shrimp. The other, grilled vegetable stacks. I coupled this meal with fresh rosemary and olive oil bread, from Bread and Cie, and truly loved every bite.
Risotto con Gamberetti (Risotto with Shrimp)
Serves 4
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and halved
lengthwise
1 small yellow onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup arborio rice
1⁄2 cup dry white wine
1 tomato, peeled, seeded, and diced
3 cups chicken stock, hot
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1⁄4 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano (optional)
Heat 2 tbsp. of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, until shrimp are almost done, about 1 minute. Remove shrimp with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add remaining 1 tbsp. oil and reduce heat to medium-low. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions begin to soften, about 10 minutes.
Add rice, stirring to coat with oil. Add wine and tomatoes and cook, stirring, until rice absorbs all liquid, 2–3 minutes. Add hot stock 1 cup at a time. Continue cooking, stirring constantly and allowing rice to absorb all liquid before adding additional stock.
Add shrimp and cook, stirring, until rice is tender and risotto is creamy but not wet, about 5 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper. If desired, stir in parmigiano-reggiano.
Grilled Vegetable Stacks
Serves 8 (because there are 2 of us, I ate these left overs all week for lunch)
2 medium eggplants
Salt
1 medium yellow squash
1 medium zucchini
2 medium tomatoes
1⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing
vegetables
2 1⁄2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh basil
Freshly ground black pepper
1⁄4 cup diced red bell pepper (or hot chile, such as
serrano)
Slice eggplants into 1⁄4"-thick rounds, sprinkle with salt, and layer in a colander. Weigh down with a plate and set aside to drain for 20 minutes. Brush salt off eggplant.
Preheat a gas or charcoal grill (or place a stove-top grill pan over medium-high heat). Slice squash and zucchini into 1⁄4"-thick rounds and slice tomatoes into 1⁄2"-thick rounds. Lightly brush all vegetables with olive oil, then grill, turning once, until tender and slightly charred, about 30 seconds per side for tomatoes, 2–3 minutes per side for eggplant, squash, and zucchini.
Whisk together 1⁄2 cup olive oil, vinegar, parsley, and basil in a mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper. To assemble, place 1 eggplant round on a plate and stack on top a tomato round, a second eggplant round, and squash and zucchini rounds. Drizzle with dressing and top with diced red pepper.
