shrimp pesto risotto w/ asparagus

my first experience of eating risotto was back in college, the summer after my sophomore year. that summer i lived with a handful of my Calhoun friends and one of our friends, Amy Radding, would often come over to our apartment and cook up a storm. it was Amy who introduced me to risotto! it was divine! then, a few weeks ago, my friend Brooke Morales had me over for dinner and she cooked risotto. it was sooo good! i knew kevin would love it so i was inspired to make it.

Ingredients:

For the shrimp (cooking directions from The Kitchn):

• 1/2 pound jumbo shrimp
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1/2 tsp paprika

For the asparagus (cooking directions from The Pioneer Woman):

•  1 bunch of asparagus
• 3 Tbs olive oil
• salt & pepper

For the risotto:

• 3 shallots, chopped
• 2 Tbs butter
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbs pesto
• salt & pepper

the star of the this is really the risotto, so i won’t take the time to explain how to cook the asparagus and shrimp, but the links for those are available above. here’s how to cook the risotto:

1. Warm the chicken broth in a sauce pan set over low-medium heat.
2. In a separate saute pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Cook the shallots until slightly translucent. Add the rice and stir until it is mixed with the butter and shallots.
3. Add a ladle of broth to the rice and stir until it is fully absorbed. (or 1/2 cup of white wine. we decided to make our risotto without wine).
4. Add another ladle of broth and repeat the process until you use all the broth. *note: make sure to stir constantly while the liquid is being absorbed by the rice.The risotto is ready when the rice is still a bit chewy, and the dish has the consistency of thick porridge.
5. When the risotto is ready, turn off the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese and pesto. Add salt & pepper to taste.

for step by step pictures, check out this tutorial that my friend Brooke shared with me: How to Make Risotto

for our risotto, we added asparagus, freshly chopped roma tomatoes, and then  topped it with the shrimp. i thought it tasted great even without the shrimp.

this recipe was SUCH a winner! it was so soooo good! and risotto is also really easy to cook! this is probably not for those who are trying to cut on calories, but for those who are trying to bulk (like kevin), it’s perfect! yum yum yumm

04 Apr This entry was published on April 4, 2014 at 9:25 am and is filed under Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.