Sweet Potato Risotto

My original plan was to make fish tacos, but when we went to the grocery the first day after the snopocalypse, there were no avocados or green cabbage and the fish looked less than fresh. So I improvised. I had a couple sweet potatoes, risotto, and a pack of 5 pepper and onion sausages that I didn't need all of for my baked pasta dish later in the week. The final dish had great flavor, sweet and umami and perfect for two feet of snow on the ground.

And I had randomly gotten some radicchio, which I thought would make a yummy side dish. For that, I chopped up the radicchio, marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper for about an hour, grilled in a grill pan, and then dressed with balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese.

From 2010-02-12

Sweet Potato Risotto

2 sausages, taken out of casing or about 1/3 lb of loose sausage (I used pepper and onion from Harris Teeter, made fresh in store)
2 medium sized sweet potatoes, cut into small 1/4 inch cubes
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup arborio rice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 1/2 - 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock (see my next post for a quick and easy homemade version!)
1/2 cup cream or half-and-half
1/2 cup dry white wine or vermouth
1/2 cup shredded romano or parmesan cheese
2-4 T olive oil

From 2010-02-12

1. Heat stock in a pot so that it's ready for the risotto. For quick and easy homemade stock, see my next post!

2. Heat a medium to large pot to medium high heat. Pour in a couple tablespoons of olive oil and heat until the oil starts to shimmer. Put in the sausage and brown, 3-5 minutes. Add in the vegetables and cook until the potatoes start to soften, 8--10 minutes. You will need to stir frequently and scrape the bottom of the pan to mix in the browning vegetables and sausage.

From 2010-02-12

3. Add the cup of arborio rice and toast for 1-2 minutes, mixing in with the vegetables and sausage.

From 2010-02-12

4. Begin adding in the stock a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir, and once there is no more visible liquid, add in the next 1/2 cup. You will need to stir almost the entire time (although unlike the way some people do it, we often walk away from the pot for a couple of minutes to say, change the station on Pandora. Continue until you've used all the stock and the rice is getting to the texture you like. This part will take about 20 minutes.

3. Add in the 1/2 cup of wine or vermouth and check the consistency. Finally, add in the 1/2 cup of cream or half and half and stir until absorbed into the rice.

4. Remove from heat and stir in the 1/2 cup of romano or parmesan. Scoop into a serving dish and garnish with parsley.

From 2010-02-12