What is wrong with this picture?
Absolutely nothing.
It’s creamy. It’s cheesy. It’s topped with crispy speck and mushrooms.
It’s love.
Every “Upstate New Yorker” complains about the winter months. We don’t get inches of snow; we get feet. We don’t have blustery winds; we have lake-effect. Jack Frost doesn’t nip at your nose; he gives you frost bite. Winters are brutal.
All of the negative thoughts aside, when we have a Christmas with no snow it is sad. We miss the coziness of home. We miss the excuse to drink copious amounts of hot chocolate, sit by a fire and eat hearty stews and crock-pot dinners.
It’s late December and Central New York has FINALLY been seeing snow fall.
I decided to make a post-Christmas dinner to reflect the weather. I took the turkey carcass from our Christmas supper and made turkey stock for soup and other happenings through out the week.
[To make Turkey Stock: Leftover Turkey Carcass + About 1.5 Gallons of Cold Water in a stock pot (Water should be a few inches above the bones). Bring the water to a simmer for 4-6 hours. DO NOT BOIL. As the bones simmer, skim any foam/fat/scum off the top of the pot and discard. During the last 1 hour of simmering, add about 2 Onions cut into large pieces, 2 carrots and 2 stalks of celery. Add 1 sachet (1 sprig of thyme, 1 clove of garlic, 1 parsley stem, 6 crushed black peppercorns, 1 bay leaf.) Strain the stock and cool.]
Instead of using chicken stock for my risotto, I used turkey stock.
I roasted butternut squash with garlic, thyme and bay leaves for extra flavor. Pureed the mixture in the food processor and added the mix to the risotto before the last addition of stock.
This risotto had a few non-traditional flavor boosts.
1) I start my risotto by heating oil in a pot over a medium-low. I add onions and shallots to the pot and “sweat” them (no color!).
2) Once the onions and shallots are fragrant and translucent, I add arborio or carnaroli rice to the pot and stir to coat. Wait about 2-3 minutes until the rice starts to smell nutty.
3) From here, I start adding hot (GOOD QUALITY) stock a ladle full at a time. (Most recipes say to add 1/4 cup of white wine here but I find the wine flavor gets lost through the cooking process so I add it at the end.) Add enough to slightly cover the rice. When the liquid has fully absorbed, add another ladle.
4). In a separate small pot, add about 1/2 cup white wine, 1 bay leaf, a few black peppercorns, thyme and parsley. Turn the heat to high and reduce the wine by about 2/3s. Strain this mixture and add the reduced wine to the risotto before the last addition of stock.
5). Before serving, the risotto should look fluid. Whip in (mantecare) 1/3 cup (or so) Parmesan cheese.
6.) Garnish with complimentary things–I reserved some of the butternut squash, browned mushrooms and added speck to a pan to crisp.
I love risotto. And snow.
Happy Winter,
Nora
[...] nice Winter dinner for a brisk night in Upstate New York. Although, I feel obligated to say: the butternut risotto I made takes the cake for ultimate “Winter Comfort” in my book. I am aware that this is [...]