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Tag: arborio rice

Chilean Sea Bass with Smoked Paprika with Corn Risotto and Avocado Salad

Smoked Paprika Rubbed Chilean Seabass

  • 1½ pound Chilean sea bass, cut into 3 to 4 filets

Spice Rub

  • 1 teaspoon coriander powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Mix the spices in a small bowl. Rub the fish filets all over with the spice rub. Marinate for 2 to 3 hours in the fridge.

  • Olive oil
  • Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the fish filets on a lined cookie sheet. Drizzle oil and sprinkle salt on each of the filets. Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, depending on the size of the filets.

Corn Risotto with Avocado Salad

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon roasted cumin, powdered
  • 1 medium shallot, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 ears of corn, off the cob
  • 1 cup Arborio rice
  • 3 to 4 cups chicken broth, warmed
  • Salt
  • 1/3 half and half
  • ½ cup queso fresco, grated

Heat a wide frying pan with the olive oil. Add the cumin and sauté for a minute on medium heat. Add the shallot and garlic. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the corn and the rice. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes on medium low heat. Gradually add the broth one ladle at a time, stirring the rice in between. Add the liquid as it cooks out. The risotto should take about 20 minutes to cook. Add the half and half and cheese. Mix well and check for seasonings. Add salt. Serve with avocado salad on top and fish on the side.

Avocado and Tomato Salad

  • 1 large Hass avocado, cut into ½ inch pieces
  • ½ cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
  • Juice of half a lime
  • Salt
  • ½ cup cilantro, chopped

Mix the avocado, tomatoes, lime juice, salt and cilantro in a medium bowl. Mix well and serve on top of the risotto with the fish on the side.

Risotto with Leftover Chicken Stew

What do you do with leftover stew??? Well, I have an amazing way to transform stew leftovers!!! Why not make a risotto?? I needed to pat myself on the back- this is brilliant. The risotto has amazing flavor thanks to the stew…I love coming up with ways to reuse my leftovers and make completely different dishes…

  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup Arborio rice
  • 1 cup leftover sauce and vegetables from the stew
  • 2 to 3 cups warm mushroom or chicken stock
  • ¼ cup half and half
  • Salt

Heat a medium sized frying pan with the oil. Add the Arborio rice and sauté over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cup of leftover stew and stir on medium heat for a minute. Add 2 cups of broth, mix well and cover with lid and cook for 10 minutes on a low heat. Take lid off and add more liquid, stir and simmer, covered with a lid for another 5 to 7 minutes. Take the lid off and continue cooking, while stirring till the rice is cooked through. Add the half and half. Check for seasonings and add salt if necessary. Serve warm.

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

This was delicious risotto, especially since I served it with my world famous braised short ribs! I would recommend this for the holidays. People will be very impressed with this dish. It is quite easy to make, especially since you can make the puree a day ahead.

Butternut Squash Puree

  • 1 pound butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Add the squash to a lined cookie sheet. Add the oil, honey, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Mix well and roast for 30 to 40 minutes or till the squash is tender to the touch. Process till smooth in a processor. Take out and keep aside.

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 2 large shallots, minced
  • 2 cups Arborio rice
  • ½ cup white wine
  • 1 cup butternut squash puree
  • 4 to 6 cups chicken stock, hot
  • ½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
  • Salt
  • ½ cup parsley, chopped
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Add the oil and butter into a medium saucepan and sauté the shallots until translucent and soft. Add the rice and stir until the rice is coated with oil and butter and gets translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add white wine and stir over medium heat until all liquid is absorbed. Add the butternut squash puree, stir to combine. Add the chicken stock in ½ cup increments. Allow the stock to absorb while stirring. Repeat this process with each addition of stock. Add enough stock so that the rice is cooked al dente and slightly creamy. Stir in the cheese and salt. Mix well and check for seasonings. Serve with braised short ribs or any other protein.

Thyme Pecorino Risotto with Pan Seared Scallops and Arugula

Pan Seared Scallops with Thyme Risotto I can’t think of a better way to start the New Year than with some delicious scallops. We all love scallops in our family. Especially with some delicious risotto. A lot of people are intimidated to make risotto- but one needs to have a bit of patience. The method is quite simple and the flavor combinations are limitless. I decided to add fresh thyme and Pecorino cheese in this dish. I love Pecorino for its delicious punch of flavor.

The scallops are super easy to make. All one needs is a good non-stick pan, some delicious olive oil and salt and pepper. The pan needs to be screaming hot and the scallops are done in minutes. To complete the meal, I dressed some delicious arugula with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

The whole meal was very easy to make and didn’t take very long. Try this in the New Year…. a great start!

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 medium shallots, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 4 to 5 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 cup Arborio rice
  • 4 cups chicken broth, heated
  • ½ cup half and half
  • 1 cup Pecorino cheese, shredded
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil on medium heat. Add the shallots and cloves and sauté on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the thyme and rice and sauté for a minute. Add the chicken broth half cup at a time, stirring constantly on medium heat. Keep repeating the process till the rice is cooked. Add the half and half and cheese. Taste for seasonings and add the salt and pepper.

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 12 large scallops or more
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Heat a large non-stick pan and add the oil. Saute the scallops on high and brown on both sides, about 2 minutes each (depends on the size of the scallops). Serve on top of risotto.

Arugula Salad

  • 3 cups baby arugula
  • Juice of half lemon
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Toss the arugula with the lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper. Add a cup of tossed greens on top of the scallops and serve.

Roasted Fennel Risotto with Chilean Sea Bass

Roasted Fennel Risotto with Chilean SeabassThis is a delicious and sophisticated dish I came up with. I made this through the week but I think it is very appropriate for a special occasion or a nice Sunday dinner. I have been using fennel a lot these days- raw and roasted. I decided to roast it and cut it up and use it in a risotto- why not, I thought… I also roasted some other aromatic like garlic and shallot. All these ingredients gave the risotto and lovely sweet, nutty flavor.

I bought one of my husband’s favorite fish- Chilean sea bass and marinated it in a miso mixture and simply sautéed it. I also tossed baby arugula with olive oil and lemon juice.

The combination of the risotto and fish with the arugula was unusually delicious… try this dish when you want to impress your family…
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Shrimp and Spinach Risotto- Latin Style

Shrimp and Spinach Risotto A Latin style risotto, you ask? Well, why not?? Risotto is one of our favorite things to eat and I am always trying to make it in new and different ways incorporating new ingredients every time. Risotto is made with Arborio rice which is a thick grained rice. It is white rice and thus processed- the key is to use the best ingredients one can find while making risotto and eat it in moderation. Usually risotto is finished with cream, butter and cheese making it quite heavy. It can be made lighter and healthier by using good olive oil and a moderate amounts of cheese.

This risotto is a bit different from the Italian variety. I decided to use some Latin flavors… so, I marinated the shrimp with some smoked paprika, garlic powder and salt. I then sautéed some shallots and garlic. I added the rice, kidney beans. I cooked the risotto with chicken broth and added fresh baby spinach. The addition of all these yummy ingredients make this risotto quite light and very delicious. The key to making light dishes is to boost the flavor factor- in this case, it is the delicious marinated shrimp.

Try this dish next time you want to have a delicious, healthy and different risotto- try this one..
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Lemon and Dill Risotto

Lemon and Dill Risotto There is nothing better than a bowl of creamy, cheesy risotto.. well, maybe a bowl of creamy, cheesy risotto topped with dill shrimp scampi. It was a delicious combination of flavors. The shrimp had garlic, dill and lemon juice… so, I decided to mimic the flavors in the risotto as well. I love making risotto.. it is like having a blank canvas.. I can do whatever I want with it.

I started with garlic and shallots. I added the rice, some white wine and broth. Once the rice was almost cooked, I added half and half, cheese, lemon zest and of course the main ingredient of the evening- dill. The green specks looked amazing against the snowy white rice. It tasted even better, especially with a huge helping of the shrimp scampi…
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