Meyer Lemon Risotto Recipe

This is the time of the year when my husband Lulu brings me lots and lots of citrus from our garden. I'm always most excited about the lemons from our Meyer lemon tree. If you go to the market, you'll notice how expensive this variety of lemon is. It was such a treat when Lulu came inside a couple of days ago with about 50 Meyer lemons. It’s a small dwarf tree and hasn’t produced nearly as much in the past, but boy did it make up for it this year!

In honor of our bounty, I have a few recipes I’m going to dust off and make, such as Meyer lemon mousse, lemon curd, lemon cake and a few jars of marmalade. I also tried to  think of a savory dish I could make, and Lulu suggested I adapt the lemon pasta sauce I made in the past (that recipe in turn was from Ina Garten) and turn it into a risotto. 

This evening, I made the Meyer lemon flavored risotto and it was such a hit. I used a combination of garlic, shallots, butter and half and half in the dish, so really, how could it go wrong?

Sweet Potato Risotto Recipe

With Valentine's Day coming up soon, I thought I'd share with you an easy gourmet potato dish. This recipe didn't make it to my "Haute Potato" cookbook, but it is one of my favorites, nonetheless.

Sweet potatoes are roasted then added to pre-cooked Arborio rice. The finishing touch fot his risotto is a dollop of truffle butter. I recently discovered Thierry Farges' Aux Délices des Bois brand of truffle butter at the Fancy Food Show, and it's amazingly flavorful. You should definitely give this a try! 

Roasted Red Pepper Risotto (Ajvar Recipe)

This risotto recipe gets its rich flavor and color from ajvar, a Serbian mix of puréed roasted bell peppers, eggplant, garlic and chiles. It’s very versatile, easy to make and stores very well.

I prepared the sauce a day in advance. You'll likely have some leftover ajvar after making the risotto, which can be used on toast or as filling in puff pastry appetizers. 

Onion Curry Risotto Recipe (Fusion Dish)

On any given night, there are dishes from two or more cultures on our dining table. And I often combine the leftovers to make something new the following day. As an example, we recently had some extra  dopiaza (onion duo curry), which I used to flavor risotto. The onion gravy melded with the creamy Arborio rice and came out beautifully.

I've come up with several recipes using this flavorful curry, such as onion tatin tart, onion-filled manicotti and gratin casserole dishes. If you browse through the site, you'll find other recipes to help you waste less food and save money at the same time. It works for my family, so it should work for yours as well.

Brussels Sprouts Risotto Recipe

Roasting vegetables is probably the best way to showcase the flavor, particularly the sweetness, of a vegetable. At the market this past week, I found some beautiful Brussels sprouts, which are one of Lulu’s favorite vegetables. I really enjoy them as well, especially when roasted. You can use them as a side, or as I did in this risotto, as the primary flavor in a main course.

Brussels sprouts risotto is synonymous with winter; it's succulent, creamy and the ultimate comfort food. I didn't add any cream though, just a touch of herb fromager d'Affinois at the end. To make the dish, I roasted some Brussels sprouts until soft, caramelized and tender and used them as a base to flavor risotto. I also added chopped Brussels sprouts to vegetable broth so the rice is bursting with the taste of the root vegetable.

Risotto is fairly easy to prepare, and a great showcase for fresh ingredients. My trick for consistently preparing quality risotto is to cook the grains of rice in a little oil so they don't stick to each other too much. Then, warm broth is incrementally added until the risotto is cooked to perfection. My husband Lulu loved it and I'm sure if you give this recipe a try, you will too!