Breath of the Wild #71: Crab Risotto

Ingredients: Any Crab, Hylian Rice, Goat Butter, Rock Salt

Description: "An everyday staple of seaside villages, the secret to its delicious flavor lies in crab fat."

If you'll remember way back in recipe 21, I bought and boiled a small heap of crabs. This is the day after I did all that, to use that fresh(ish) boiled crabmeat in this risotto. We have our arborio rice, butter and rock salt as per the recipe, and i'll also be flavouring it with veg stock, sweetcorn, garlic, parsley, white wine, lemongrass and lime. I thought i was gonna keep it simple!

I'll melt the butter and brown the crushed garlic. Everything else is cooked I guess, so it can go in near the end. Do i need more butter? I guess i can add more if it needs it..

Next ive added hot water and mixed in the stock cube, and then ill add the risotto rice.

I suppose I should put those misc seasonings in too... plenty of the rock salt, and a little bit of white wine and the lemongrass. Its just there because i want to finish up that old jar thats been in my fridge for ages tbh.

OK while the rice is cooking time to deconstruct this crab! I'll save a couple claws for garnish, and ill use half of the crab meat now and freeze half to use in the crab omurice for recipe 79!

I need to keep stirring the rice and topping it up with water as I go along.

In goes the crab meat, sweetcorn, chopped parsley and that lime wedge.

***

It's fine. The rice is still a little bit undercooked, my bad. This is the trouble with always winging it. It tastes a bit like.. garden? I think its the garlic and parsley. I kinda actually wish i used something to enhance the crab flavour, like seafood stock or crab sticks. I guess they said the secret ingredient was crab fat, I didn't have any crab fat. Do crabs really have fat?

Breath of the Wild #69: Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients: Any Mushroom, Hylian Rice, Goat Butter, Rock Salt

Description: "The tantalizing aroma of mushrooms and butter beckons you to the table."

I was gonna get dried mushrooms for this and make some kinda stock, but I saw they had a nice easy mushroom sauce and some mixed oyster mushrooms, so why not? Alongside that I've got risotto rice, spring onion, butter, seasonings and parmesan.

I'll fry the mushrooms and spring onions in plenty of butter to start... I think i'll just keep the mushrooms whole, better for the final photo and that.

Then I can throw in the rice and seasonings, I've got salt, mixed pepper, extra white pepper, and tarragon. The pre-made sauce should provide extra flavours since it's got garlic and white wine.

Then we keep adding water and stirring till the rice is cooked. 

Once it's nice and cooked, I add in the sauce and some grated parmesan and mix that all in. Oh and I still have some basil for garnish.

****

The rice is perfectly cooked and the creamy mushroom flavour is... well, it's about as good as mushroom gets on its own I think. It would be better with some other ingredients, like meat or peas.

Breath of the Wild #68: Vegetable Risotto

Ingredients: Any carrot or pumpkin, Goat Butter, Hylian Rice, Rock Salt

Description: "The sweetness of the ingredients gives this risotto a mild flavor."

Someone gave me a fun ingredient to use for this one - a jar of i guess... sweet and sour preserved pumpkin? I'll cook that with an onion, carrot, veg stock, bit of basil. And proper risotto rice of course. See how that goes.

Here's in our jar! Pumpkin chunks, sweet and sour, but not too much so. Think this will work?

I'll start by dicing the onion as small as I can, and browning that with plenty of butter.

Then the carrot too, I can add a bit more butter slowly as well.

I reckon I can just put the whole jar in liquid and all, and cook the risotto in that with some added water and the veg stock cube. Then i throw the rice on and let it cook for ages, stirring often.

It looks nearly done, i'll add some chopped basil and extra salt, since thats in the ingredient.

****

It's a fun, buttery, mild, sweet and savoury flavour! The vegetables are still surprisingly crunchy while the rice thankfully isn't. Maybe pumpkin isn't my absolute favourite risotto flavour ever, but I think I executed it well, and yeah I do like it.

30 Gourmet Sandwiches #26: Grape and Taleggio Grilled Cheese

 I've made a calculated decision to venture to waitrose and get the correct cheese again. Partially because I just dont really know what taleggio is like.

But I found it! One fancy block of taleggio, red grapes, and for the "honey wholewheat" the closest i could find is a malted multi-seed bloomer. It seems like it would match well anyway.

Ugghh this bread is too soft and this butter is diabolically hard. I guess i should stop buying cheap butter? And yes its been outside of the fridge for over a day. I can't be bothered to microwave it though the grills gonna melt it anyhow.

Now for the exciting cheese reveal! It feels like im unboxing some premium ingredient. I've never had this before, i guess its prettymuch like a brie?

Thats probably enough to melt nicely on everything.

Now i just cut some grapes in half.

Looks kind of unsettling like that! Quick lets slam the lid on and squash it into a delicious lunch.

****

Very nice, the talegg seems like a good grilling cheese that goes well with the flavourful wholegrain bread. The grapes are fine, they dont clash but im not so sold on them, they add a bit of sweetness and a lot of wateryness to an already oozing kind of sandwich. I might try making this again later but with cranberry sauce (leftover from recipe #16!) instead of grapes.

30 Gourmet Sandwiches #18: Chicken Red-Pepper Pesto Panini

 I'm back from the shops, a headache is brewing... but lets get this show on the road.

I'll go all out and grill the chicken and pepper myself, its not too much trouble.

I'm brushing the chicken with olive oil, paprika salt, pepper, and a tiny bit of thyme, lemon & bay seasoning (though its almost empty i didnt get much out)

Don't forget the peppers too! I oiled and seasoned them the same way.

The chicken isnt quite done yet, but this pepper looks good, i'll let it cool for a bit.

Once it's cooled i'll blend it... im adding some mustard and lemon juice since i have it handy, idk. Getting a bit improvisational up in here today.

It comes out a great red colour! Does this really count as "pesto"? is that italian for "putting whatever you want in a blender"???

The chicken looks done! Sorry about the state of my grill tray, i made bacon the other day.

Cutting open my lidl bakery panini... looks real good!

Thick spread of the roasted pepper "pesto". Looks to die for.

The chicken breast was quite thicc so ive sliced it flatways to fit it on the sandwich perfectly, and as a bonus you can see if its cooked all the way through that way.

And don't forget, the rocket (arugula) and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar! I made it a generous drizzle since i forgot to put any in the pesto.

****

I think mines better. They said panini/ciabatta but theirs looks like a burger bun? Anyway it was really bangin, I loved the pepperyness of the rocket with the sweetness of the vinegar and pesto. And the chewy crusty breads a great choice with salad-y Mediterranean flavours. The only thing holding it back from being an instant classic though, is it was a little watery. I guess i should have roasted the peppers longer or left them out a bit to dry. And ideally used a balsamic reduction. I'm not a deli though i ain't doing all that.

30 Gourmet Sandwiches #12: Open-Faced Prosciutto and Asparagus

Another idea I've never considered, but it sounds pretty normal.

Got a really nice looking artisanal baguette. Or a xenomorph head. You decide. Also prosciutto cotto, asparagus, and some of the usual suspects for garnish.

I'm going to fry the asparagus spears with a small puddle of water and a bit of butter so they kinda half-steam but brown a tiny bit at the end.

This time i found a mixed bag that has a bunch of greens, im just gonna pick out some rocket(arugula leaves) from it, since ive been in the habit of putting massive fistfuls of garnish on my other sandwiches thus far.

Which means we only really need the tiniest bit of olive oil and lemon juice to toss it in, I reckon i can just stab the lemon with a fork and squeeze out a few drips.

Nice looking half a piece of baguette and some mustard. This sandwich list really loves dijon mustard. 

Layered on 3 folded slices of the proscuitto.

And the cooked asparagus fits on nicely too, now we just top with the garnish and eat! Easy peasy lemo- no wait... easy forky lemon porky.

**

Its alright. It's an annoying way to eat asparagus compared to picking it up and dipping it, since everything on this is so fibrous. The flavours go fine together, but I dont really like the flavour of prosciutto that much unless its been crisped up a bit and combined with some stronger flavours. The bread is really nice.