Bacon and Leek Risotto with White-Wine Poached Duck Eggs

I made this dish as a part of a meal for an online cooking competition (fingers crossed that I place!), so there are more pictures than usual of the actual process... something I'm sure you won't mind when you lay eyes on this dish :)


In my opinion, there is nothing more appetizing than an oozing egg yolk. How can you make this better? Use a bigger egg! Bigger egg= bigger yolk. In this case, I used duck eggs on top of a sumptuous risotto.
I have to be honest, I LOVE this dish... far more than most other dishes. What can I say? I'm a sucker for comfort food, and this dish takes all of my favorite comfort foods and combines them: runny yolks, risotto, and bacon. What's not to love?
There are so many glorious textures and flavors that play off of one another here: rich, velvety egg yolk, crisp, peppery bacon, soft, sweet leeks, chewy, creamy rice... basically one of the best things you will ever lock your jaws around.


(By the way, I have a redesign for my blog being worked on and I CANNOT wait for it to be done because I am so sick of Blogger! It never works right for me. For instance, I have ZERO clue why my font is much smaller than normal here.)

Bacon and Leek Risotto with White-Wine Poached Duck Eggs

recipe adapted from here

ingredients:

• 2-3 duck eggs
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 garlic clove
• splash of vinegar (not pictured)
• 3-ish cups low-sodium chicken broth
• ½ tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 4 slices thick bacon, somewhat diced (I used a peppered bacon)
• 1 leek, thinly sliced (white and pale green only, please)
• ¾ cup Arborio rice
• ½ cup dry white wine + more for poaching eggs (I used a Pinot Grigio)
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• ½-1 tbsp. butter
• 1-ish tbsp. grated parmigiana reggiano + more for garnish

First we need to poach the eggs:

1. Get a sauce pan and fill it with a couple inches of white wine. Bring it to simmer with the bay leaf, garlic clove, salt, pepper, and a splash of vinegar.
2. Crack an egg into a ramekin and carefully drop it into the liquid. Repeat with remaining eggs. Cook the eggs for about a minutes, spooning hot wine over the tops. 
3. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in a cold water bath. Turn the wine off but leave it on the stove (we're going to reheat the eggs in the wine when the risotto is done).

Now for the risotto:

1. Make sure that your broth is simmering in a pot on the stove. Get a nice big dutch oven or saute pan and heat the olive oil over medium or medium-high heat. Add in the bacon and cook until crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and place onto some paper towels, but leave the drippings in the pan. 
2. Add the leeks to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, until soft. Take two tablespoons full of the leeks and set aside in a small bowl to garnish the dish later.
3. Add the rice to the pan and toast the grains up for a couple of minutes. Add in the wine and stir until it is absorbed. 
4. Now start adding in the broth, one or two ladle-fulls at a time, and stirring after each addition until the broth is absorbed. Do this until the rice is done (the grains should have a slight bite to them), about 25 minutes. 
5. Stir in the bacon (be sure to leave some out if you want it for garnish), butter, and parmigiana reggiano. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. 
6. Reheat the poached eggs in the wine for a minute or so until heated through.
7. Top each bowl of risotto with a poached egg (remember to season with salt and pepper), your reserved leeks and bacon, and extra parmigiana reggiano.

Ina's Spring Green Risotto

The arrival of spring has brought so many striking greens (especially the asparagus) to the produce section at the store! I wanted a recipe that I could use a bunch of them in and remembered that Ina had a risotto recipe- perfect!

Risotto is one of my very favorite dishes, and it had been quite a while since I last made any (see here and here); I decided that this Spring Green Risotto was the best way to let the greens I wanted to use shine at the peak of their season.

This risotto was pure heaven. In fact, it may just be the best risotto I have ever made! The mascarpone made it so creamy and rich, but with the abundance of asparagus, leeks, peas, and fennel, the dish was still fresh and vibrant. I loved the slight licorice flavor that the fennel brought in paired with the sweet peas, and the lemon added a wonderful brightness to the dish.
Also, I just want to stress that you absolutely must use a good parmesan cheese (parmigiano reggiano) in the risotto; it makes a night and day difference. 

I served my risotto as a main course, but I imagine that some Lemon Roasted Chicken would be sublime with it.

Ina's Spring Green Risotto

recipe from here

serves 4 as a main dish or 6 as a side

ingredients:

• 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tbsp butter
• 2 leeks, chopped, white and light green parts only
• 1 fennel bulb, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 2/3 cups Sauvignon Blanc (or other dry white wine)
• 4-6 cups chicken stock, simmering
• 1 bunch thin asparagus, cut at a diagonal
• 10 ounces fresh or frozen peas
• freshly grated lemon zest, from 2 lemons
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• freshly squeezed lemon juice, from 1/2 a juicy lemon
• 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano
• 3 tbsp fresh chives, minced

1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a medium saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the leeks and fennel and saute until tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
2. Add in the rice and stir for a minute to coat. Ad in the white wine and simmer over low heat, stirring constantly until most of the wine is absorbed.
3. Add the chicken stock 2 ladles at a time, stirring constantly. Wait for the stock to be absorbed before adding more. This will take probably 25-35 minutes.
4. While cooking the risotto, blanch the asparagus in boiling salted water for 4-5 minutes. Drain and immediately run under cold water.
5. When the risotto has been cooking for about 15 minutes, add in the asparagus, peas, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking and adding stock until rice is tender but still has a bite to it.
6. In a small bowl, combine the mascarpone and lemon juice.
7. When the risotto is done, remove from heat and stir in the mascarpone mixture, parmigiano reggiano, and chives.
8. Serve immediately and garnish with additional chives and parmigiano reggiano if desired.

Lemon Risotto with Roasted Asparagus

I seem to be in a lemon-y mood today. First lemon cookies and then a dinner based around lemon? Jeeze, ha ha!

I had been wanting to make some risotto again after my great success with my Creamy Risotto, and I thought that a lemon risotto would pair nicely with my Lemon Baked Chicken.

This risotto was rich and velvety with some really nice citrus undertones. As delicious as it was, I knew I would need a nice, green veggie to offset the somewhat-heavy (in a good way!) risotto. I always like asparagus paired with lemon, so asparagus it was!

I HIGHLY recommend this dish whether it be for a main course, appetizer, or in my case, a side !

Lemon Risotto with Roasted Asparagus

recipe adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything

risotto ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 70 grams shallots or onion, chopped
• Pinch of saffron
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup Sauvignon Blanc (or other dry white wine)
• 4 to 6 cups chicken stock
• zest of one lemon
• 4 tbsp butter, preferably at room temperature
• at least 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

1. Heat the 2 tbsp of butter in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add the onion/shallots and saffron and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes.
2. Add the rice and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Add a bit of salt and pepper and pour in the wine. Stir and allow the liquid to bubble away.
3. Add the stock, 1/2 cup at a time, constantly stirring. When the stock is just about evaporated, add more. Keep the heat at around medium and begin tasting the rice 20 minutes after it is added.
4. When the rice is almost done, add the lemon zest. Continue to cook and add stock until the rice is tender but still has a bite to it.
5. When the risotto is cooked to perfection, remove from heat, add in the softened butter and the Parmigiano Reggiano. Taste and adjust the seasoning; top with the roasted asparagus spears and serve!

asparagus ingredients:

• 1 bunch thin asparagus
• 1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• fleur de sel
• freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Break the ends off of the asparagus spears where each spear breaks naturally.
3. Toss the asparagus in the olive oil and spread them out on a baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and fresh cracked pepper.
4. Bake for 12- 15 minutes or until the asparagus just begins to brown and becomes a vibrant green.
5. Place a few spears over the risotto and serve!

Creamy, Dreamy Risotto

Ree from The Pioneer Woman and I seem to hold the same belief that a bit of heavy cream can go a long way in some dishes. As soon as I saw her risotto recipe I knew that I would have to make it.

It was creamy, and rich, and oh-so-satisfying. A small dollop of this stuff is PLENTY and the richness paired so nicely with the salad and fish I served along side it. Also, it should be mentioned that this risotto got quite a few compliments .

Creamy, Dreamy Risotto

adapted from here

ingredients:

• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tbsp butter
• 1 very small sweet onion, diced
• 2 big cloves of garlic, minced
• 12 ounces Arborio rice
• 3 1/2 to 5 cups chicken stock (low sodium is best)
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• chives to garnish

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is translucent.
2. Add in the rice on top of the onion and garlic and stir to coat.
3. Add in the chicken stock in 1/2 cup increments, stirring after each addition until the liquid is absorbed. Continue to repeat this step until the rice no longer has a hard bite to it.
4. At this point you want to add the cream, cheese, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
5. Stir in chives and sprinkle a bit on top. Serve!