The Hungry Gap Spring Risotto

It's a hungry time of year here in my garden



The Hungry Gap is the time of year when Winters crops are all gone but the Spring harvest is still a ways off. I don't mean we're not eating well, I just mean nearly every thing we're buying is coming from the markets or supermarkets, and that the garden is looking very empty indeed. Despite little sprouts and blossom promising future goodies, the only edibles currently popping up out of the ground are new garlic, asparagus, mint and hundreds of little self sown butter lettuce

There didn't seem to be much I could do with all these bits and pieces, until I thought of that great classic Risotto. I actually don't tend to make this much at home as I was put off by making it in vast quantities commercially. It still all had to be stirred by hand- only this time using a paddle, standing on a stool to reach the bottom of the pan, and sweating and steaming away for about an hour at a time. However, I bravely put aside my prejudices to create a yummy meal made from bits and pieces from the garden, store cupboard and freezer. I know I'm not the only one out there who has frozen stock stashed away, or prosciutto off cuts and goat cheese bought on special, hidden in there as well (I'm thinking of you Celia!) I might be the only one that has Jasmine, Basmati, Red, Black, Sticky white, Arborio, plain Brown and Brown Basmati rices in the store cupboard though....

A high starch, short/medium rice is usually used for risotto. The stirring releases the starch molecules on the rice which gives the risotto it's lovely creamy texture. It should always be served just al dente, and with just enough liquid to 'flow' across the plate

Hungry Gap Spring Risotto

3/4 cup Risotto Rice
750ml to 1lt Chicken Stock
2 tab lactose free Butter/Spread
1 tsp Oil
1/2 glass White Wine
Seasoning

Butter Lettuce- shredded
fresh Garlic Bulb or just a clove or 2- cut finely
few stems Asparagus- stems sliced into thin rounds, tips left intact
sprig of Mint- shredded very finely

round of soft Goat Cheese
6 slices Prosciutto
juice and rind of half a Lemon

First things first, get the stock simmering away on the stove top next to the pan you plan to cook your risotto in.

Cook the prosciutto quickly on a medium heat until just starting to brown.The rashers will crisp up as they cool down

Keeping the fat in the pan, add the oil and butter, then stir through the garlic and rice until they are nicely coated all over and just starting to go slightly translucent
I missed that photo- sorry! So here's a picture of what happens when you don't pick your asparagus in a timely manner. It grows crazy turning into a very pretty ferny thing that gets to about a metre tall

Pour in the wine and stir until it's just about evaporated

Then start adding in the hot stock about half a cup at a time, stirring all the time, until each lot of stock is absorbed before adding in the next lot. This could take about 15- 20 minutes

Make sure you have the veggies ready and on hand, as you don't want to stop stirring

When you've reached nearly the end of your stock- you might just need 750 mls, pop in the asparagus stems and stir in so they can cook through

and pop the tips into the last little bit of stock to just get tender as well

Still a nice bit of crunch to the asparagus, you don't want to ruin it by cooking it until grey and squishy

Once the rice is still just al dente, add in the lettuce

Don't worry if it look like a lot, it will wilt down nicely

Turn off the heat and mix in the goat cheese, lemon juice, rind and mint. Check for seasoning, don't forget the cheese should add quite a lot of saltiness

Look at this delicious gloopiness! If the risotto seems just a little stiff then stir in the last little bit of stock to loosen it all up

Dish up quickly while still nice and hot or it will thicken up instead of being a nice smooth style of texture. Garnish with the crispy prosciutto shards, asparagus tips and a last little sprinkle of mint and lemon rind

So Dear Readers, do you have odd things stashed away in your freezer and what's starting to pop up in your garden?


 

Sweet and Sour Pork with the Billyboil

Have you ever heard the term Thermal Cooking before dear Readers?


It certainly wasn't a term I was familiar with until recently. Also known as Vacuum Cooking, it's a great method to create delicious meals while saving on time, energy and power bills

The nice people at Billyboil kindly sent me a unit to play with, no strings attatched regarding writing a review or plugging their product, but I was genuinely impressed with it's ease of use and overall performance and just couldn't help letting you know how great it really is and how easy it is to use

The Billyboil is a nice little unit that has an insulated outer pot that acts as a thermos maintaining temperatures for quite a long time, and an inner pot that's just like a regular saucepan or stockpot.
 It's perfectly suited for 'Wet Dishes' like casseroles, curries or braising, but you can also use it to cook rice, pasta or even breads or cakes!

I thought the best way to try it out would be with a dish I'm comfortable and familiar with so I'd have something to compare it to at the end of the day

The recipe I decided to go with is pretty much my tried and true Sweet and Sour recipe. I blogged about it a few years ago here: Cooking En Masse  It's actually still one of my favourite posts, as it shows a little about what I love to do and what it's like to put your food and heart on a plate :)

I have cut down the process a little and have chosen more store cupboard ingredients along with the fresh veggies as this is more suited to the style of the Billyboil with it's camping/mobile application where you might have limited pantry access

Sweet and Sour Pork
* If you aren't lucky enough to have a Billyboil on hand, you can of course cook it gently on the stove top, in a slow cooker, or even a pressure cooker if you're pressed for time

500gm diced Pork
large tin/440gm tin Australian Pineapple Pieces
1/2 cup gf Hoisin Sauce
1 tab Sesame Oil
1 tab Arrowroot Powder
375ml tetra pack Chicken or Veggie Stock
1 big tab minced Garlic
1 big tab minced Ginger
1 large Capsicum
1 large Onion
2 large Carrots
2 large Tomatoes


For those who don't know, this is arrowroot. It's a great thickening agent that sets clear, works well with acid and doesn't need to be boiled to thicken up- it's also gluten free

You can use any cut of pork, but I used fore quarter chops and just trimmed off the bone and fat. They are such an economical cut of meat and well suited for this style of cooking

Mix the ginger, garlic and sesame oil into the pork and let it marinate for a while. Overnight would be fine, but even just while you prep the veggies will be OK

Slice the veggies into nice bite size pieces. They don't need to be too thin as you don't want them to mush

Using the inner pot, brown off the meat in a little oil. I always like to do this to seal it and add a little extra depth of flavour, but you can skip it if you don't have the time

Add in all the veggies

Combine the pineapple with all the juice, hoisin sauce and stock together, then pour into the pot and mix through

Bring the pot to the boil, then simmer for about 10 or so minutes to bring the temperature of the contents up to a safe region

Yes, the pot is quite full- I was greedy and made a huge batch. With wet dishes like this I always make extra to add to my Freezer Meal stash for busy days. The recipe given above is more manageable with just a nice generous amount for 4 or 5 hungry people. The inner pot has a 3.5 litre capacity and as you can see I filled it right up

As I don't want to give anyone food poisoning, I took the temperature of my dish after simmering so I had a bench mark to compare it to before serving, it was definitely nice and hot indeed

Quickly add in the arrowroot dissolved into a little water, and stir to mix through
Pop the lid on, and then put the whole pot into the outer unit and close it up immediately

Now go and do whatever you want to do for pretty much the rest of the day. The Billyboil website claims the unit will retain it's heat safely for up to 8 hours, so far I've only tested it to 5 1/2, but with fantastic results

I left my meal for about 4 1/2 hours, and as you can see the temperature was still well and truly in the Safe Zone at over 80*C. I could have left it for a couple more hours if I was busy and it would still have been fine, but it was dinner time and the family wasn't prepared to eat at bedtime- even for the sake of scientific investigation. They can be difficult like that sometimes... :)

Cooking the meal the Billyboil way really does work indeed! It's such a lovely gentle method of cooking that results in tender meat, veggies that still hold their shape and structure, and sauce with a lovely clean, fresh taste. I can definitely see it becoming a fixture around my kitchen as it will save so much time, effort and energy!

You can see how convenient this little package is for caravanning adventures- just get it ready in the morning while you're still plugged in on-site, and you can have a nice hot meal at tea time without having to plug in or get a generator going. It's also handy for people like my parents who live on a rural property that can be regularly flooded in and suffer power blackouts.
Last year they had to go a whole week without power and had to cook everything over an open fire. The Billyboil would have been a godsend indeed, as it only needs to be on the heat for such a small length of time and would save so much fuel and effort

So Dear Readers, what's your favourite 'Wet Dish' and have you heard of Thermal Cookers before?

Thanks to the nice guys at Billyboil for sending me one of their products to play with! For more information, or to find out where to buy a Billyboil of your own, check out their website Here 
to answer any questions you might have about this energy efficient cooking style

 

Sardines with Blood Orange and Bay Leaves

 

I know I do a lot of whinging about Winter, but I guess there are a few benefits after all....

I can stay in my fluffy slippers and PJ's all weekend because they're the warmest things I own; rich, thick soups are on the menu regularly; mulled wine is a great alternative to tea or coffee; and citrus are certainly at their best- especially the gorgeous globes of goodness that are Blood Oranges!

The very lovely people at Redbelly Citrus kindly sent me a box of their new season Blood Oranges to play with and I while I always knew how good oranges were for me, I was very interested to find out the extra benefits they provide.
The Redbelly website states that "Blood Oranges produce Anthocyanins which is extremely rare for Citrus fruits. Anthocyanin, most commonly found in berries such as the blueberry, flowering plants and red wine (derived from red grapes) is one of the most powerful phyto-chemicals known in the plant kingdom. This group phyto-chemical’s are known for their potent antioxidant capability, being some 150 times more powerful than Vitamin C alone and along with their ability to be beneficial in so many parts of health we have decided to call this specialty VitaminRED."
With such great taste as well as being extra good for me, how could I resist? Find out more of the amazing health benefits of VitaminRed HERE and tell me you're not as impressed as I am!


A Navel Orange in back and a Redbelly Blood Orange in the front

Just look at the colour contrast!

How do I explain the difference in flavour? It's subtle, maybe a bit of raspberry in there, definitely more mellow than the Navel Orange though. You know how Granny Smiths and Pink Ladys are both types of apple- same same but different- just like that! Got it? I will tell you this- I would pick the Blood Orange every time over any other variety, that's for sure, it's definitely my new favourite citrus!

Now as Redbelly Blood Oranges are such seasonal items, I wanted to pair them with some other lovely fresh produce coming into season now too. Tiny truss Tomatoes are just coming in from Queensland, radishes are nice and add a bit of zing, and wild rocket greens bring a bitter edge to the mix as well

Sardines are another great Winter winner, and I thought that the sweet blood orange combined with garlic and fresh bay would really be a great match with the slightly strong, oily fish

Sardines with Blood Orange and Bay Leaves
To serve Two

about 4 Sardines per person
3 Blood Oranges- 1 for slicing, 1 for zesting and juicing, and 1 for segmenting
1 bunch fresh Bay Leaves
4 cloves Garlic thinly sliced
half bunch fresh Parsley
1/3 cup Olive Oil

Salad
Radishes
Wild Rocket
baby Truss Tomatoes

Dressing
Blood Orange Juice
Olive Oil
Red Wine Vinegar
Salt


Slice one of the oranges into fairly thin half circles

Segment the other orange by peeling it, then cutting between membrane that separates each little piece from its neighbour

Nice and tidy now

Make the marinade by placing the oil, garlic, zest,crumpled bay leaves, juice and parsley in a dish. Squeeze in the juice from the orange bits left from segmenting as well- waste not, want not :)

Place 2 orange slices and two bay leaves as well as a couple of the garlic slivers into each sardine cavity

Place them all in the marinade and spoon some over as well. Pop this into the fridge for an hour or so to let the flavours develop

Grill the sardines with their stuffing in a hot pan for a few minutes each side, until they're just cooked through the middle and there's a nice bit of charring on the skin for extra flavour

Thinly slice the radishes and combine with the rocket and orange slices. Because it was a pretty cold day still, I decided to blister my tomatoes on the grill pan for a few minutes just to warm them through. Just because they were so pretty I kept them attached to the stem as well, but if it's nice and warm in your neck of the woods feel free to keep the tomatoes au naturel

Mix the dressing, adjusting the flavours to taste- I like a nice acidity from the vinegar. I was so lucky to have some local Homeleigh Grove Blood Orange olive oil on hand to make my dressing extra special and yummy!

Plate up your yummies, then drizzle all with the sweet, salty, acidic dressing to tie all the flavours in together

A perfect Winter Weekend Lunch- and extra good for you as well!

 
So Dear Readers, have you tried yummy Blood Oranges yet, and what's your favourite thing about Winter?

Many thanks go to Redbelly Citrus for providing me with the delicious Blood Oranges. To find the closest stockist of yummy Redbelly Citrus check out the map Here and stock up while they're in season- enjoy!