Pat Branning’s Carolina Cooking: Lighter foods for hotter days
Pat Branning’s Carolina Cooking
Beach Cottage Window is an original painting by Nancy Ricker Rhett.
Zucchini is such an overachiever in the garden this time of year, yielding more zucchini per plant than you can possibly eat or give away. For a light summer supper, stir it into a creamy risotto along with some farm fresh peas right out of the shell.
This is a Northern Italian dish made with Arborio rice. The grains will swell to two or three times their original size. They will be plump and round and have a moist, creamy consistency but slightly firm when cooked. The secret to a perfect risotto is to cook it very slowly over low heat until all the liquid has been absorbed. Risotto is one of my all time favorite foods for many reasons. There are so many things you can do with it and it can last in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Risotto with Zucchini and Peas
2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth
2½ cups water
2 tablespoons butter
2 large zucch8ni, cut into ½ inch slices
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1½ cups Arborio rice
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup farm fresh peas (frozen works)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon butterHeat the broth and water in a small saucepan over low heat. Cover and keep warm.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat and stir in the zucchini. Be careful not to crowd the pan. A crowded pan causes foods to steam rather than sauté resulting in a mushy squash. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the zucchini is golden brown, stirring constantly. Remove the zucchini to a bowl using a slotted spoon, reserving the pan drippings.
Reduce the heat and stir the onion into reserved pan drippings. Cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Increase the heat slightly and add the rice. Cook several minutes or until the rice is translucent around the edges. Mix in the wine and cook for 2 minutes or until the wine is absorbed.
Continue cooking and add the heated broth 1 cup at a time, stirring, until the broth is almost absorbed after each addition and the rice is tender. The process should take about 30 minutes. Stir in the zucchini and peas and cook for 2 minutes or until the peas are tender. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese and 1 tablespoon butter. Serve topped with additional cheese.
Pat Branning, the former women’s editor for WSB, Atlanta, is food editor for The Beaufort Tribune. She and her husband, Cloide, work together to help the underserved and uninsured in health care through a nonprofit organization called Wellness4America. Her new book of Lowcountry recipes, “Shrimp, Collards and Grits, recipes from the creeks and gardens of the South Carolina Lowcountry”, is available at bookstores in Beaufort and on Hilton Head. The website is www.mycarolinacooking.com.
Click here for more information about Pat Branning’s new cookbook.
Related posts:
- Pat Branning’s Carolina cooking: Soup’s On!
- Pat Branning’s Carolina cooking: This Valentine dinner
- Pat Branning’s Carolina cooking: Oysters for the holidays
- Pat Branning’s Carolina cooking: Chechessee standing rib roast for Christmas dinner
- Pat Branning’s Carolina Cooking: It’s just peachy in South Carolina
