Spring Vegetable Risotto

I'm happy to say that our local farmer's market opened up recently, providing fresh inspiration to cook some new dishes. There aren't a whole lot of local vegetables available in New Jersey this time of year, but we did find some asparagus that became the basis for this dish. John's parents came over last weekend for a belated mother's day dinner, and we put together this risotto, along with a rosemary and garlic pork loin (recipe to come).

Risotto is becoming one of my favorite things to cook. While it does require a lot of attention, I'm really coming to enjoy the process of adding a little stock, stirring, waiting for it to absorb, adding some more stock, sipping some wine (I had to open a bottle anyways...), stirring, etc. And this particular recipe calls for a gremolata topping, which apparently is a posh way of saying "smooshed up herbs and lemon zest". It was a nice touch, and you use the stems from the herbs to add extra flavor to your broth. I loved how this turned out, and it was a perfect excuse to cook up some spring veggies.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Yesterday I was in the mood for a good fall meal. I also wanted to convince John that butternut squash is indeed delicious. The solution: Ina Garten's butternut squash risotto.

My favorite part about this recipe is that it calls for saffron, which really classes up the dish. Saffron tends to be expensive, but I found it at a reasonable price at (where else?) Trader Joe's.  John's favorite part of the recipe is that it contains a pork product (pancetta).  Don't be afraid to make risotto... it does require constant attention, but it's not difficult to make. The end result is a creamy, delicious and filling meal which successfully convinced John that butternut squash is tasty. Really, what's not tasty when combined with this much butter and cheese?

For a vegetarian version of this dish, you could easily leave out the pancetta and use veggie stock instead of the chicken stock.