Farmer’s Market Risotto

In Portland the sky may be grey and full of clouds, but at least the farmer’s markets are open! This August cloudiness is really bumming me out (isn’t Oregon summer supposed to be sunny and perfect?!). I find it so difficult to get motivated when the weather is overcast, but I was able to muster the energy to go to the market and pull together this risotto. You can adapt it with whatemisver is available at your local market or even the grocery store. Risotto is one of my favorite throw-together meals. It’s such a versatile base. Stay tuned for future risotto recipes and ideas.

For this summer risotto, I used a patty-pan squash, a zucchini, half an onion, shishito peppers, three kinds of mushrooms (shiitake, chestnut, and oyster), and fresh corn. It is a veritable cornucopia of fresh veggie goodness. You’ll also need arborio rice, some kind of broth, butter, olive oil, white wine, and herbs to garnish. On the topic of broth, miso broth is a great choice for this recipe, but chicken or a light vegetable stock are great choices as well. The Better Than Bouillon garlic stock is one of my absolute favorite for a veg-alternative to chicken stock.

Dice the onion and melt butter in a heavy bottomed pot (I love a dutch oven for risotto) over medium heat. Add a bit of olive oil and the onions to the pot and reduce heat. While the onions simmer and soften, prepare your vegetables. I sliced up the squash, cut the kernels off the ears of corn, diced the shishitos, and chopped the mushrooms. Once onions have softened, turn up the heat and deglaze the pan with white wine. This step is optional if you don’t or can’t cook with alcohol, but does give a really classic risotto taste. Let the wine cook off and add the risotto. Stir until the arborio rice is glistening with butter and pout in stock/broth. See my notes on stock above. Pour stock in one cup at a time. Once the risotto soaks up the first cup, pour in another. Two cups of arborio rice will require about eight cups of stock.

Back to the vegetables, I heated up some butter in a cast iron and cooked the squash first in butter until softened and browned in places. I removed the squash and added the corn and shishitos to soak up the remaining butter. As those veggies browned, I added in the mushrooms. Once everything has softened and browned, remove from heat.

Now is a good time to check back in on the risotto. After the rice soaks up that last cup of stock, mix in the veggies. I mixed in the mushrooms, corn, and diced shishitos. Because I chopped the squash larger, I added that on top along with a blackened shishito pepper. Finish with minced parsley (or herb of choice) and parmesan if desired. Serve and enjoy!