Monday, October 6, 2008

Shrimp and pea risotto with pine nuts

I was browsing blogs and came upon a recipe that looked delish so I decided to make it. The recipe was on the singleguychef.blogspot.com and was for shrimp and lemon risotto. Since I didn't have lemon on hand, I improvised by adding more wine, a little heavy cream and made a toasted breadcrumb, pine nut mixture to add more texture to the dish. The final result was good and I will keep this dish in my cooking "repertoire."






Shrimp and pea risotto with toasted pine nuts

1 c arborio rice
1/2 lb shrimp (peeled devained)
3 scallions cut
2 large pats butter
4-5 cups stock (I add the shrimp shells and boil down for about 10 min then strain and use in risotto)
1/2 c white wine (dry)
1 clove garlic
1/2 c baby peas (take out of freezer when you start to cook)
1/4 c pine nuts (I toast these in a pan with my bread crumbs)
2 tbl cream
1/4 c parm
1/4 c bread crumbs (I used italian and added a little butter to the pan to help toast)
salt to taste (I didn't add pepper since there were so many delicate flavors in the dish)
*simmer stock in a sauce pan and keep warm throughout the cooking process. Saute 3/4 of the scallions in 1 pat of butter for 1-2 minutes until just soft. Add garlic and cook until tender but not brown. Add rice and let cook in butter garlic/scallion mixture for about 2-3 min on med heat until the edges become translucent. Add wine and cook until absorbed (about 1 min.) Begin adding stock 1/2 cup to 3/4 cups at a time. Stir until liquid is absorbed and keep repeating until rice is done (about 25 min.) When risotto is just al dente and still needs 1 more cup of liquid, add 1 more splash of white wine, partially frozen peas (take them out of freezer at the beginning of cooking) and shrimp. Cover and reduce heat to very low. Let cook for 5 min. Add cream, remaining scallions and parm. Plate and add toasted breadcrumbs/pine nuts on top. Serve hot with crusty bread and a big salad!



shrimp and pea risotto with toasted pine nuts

1 comment:

Single Guy Ben said...

Nice job! The breadcrumbs with pine nuts was a nice touch. I'm going to have to try that too. ;-)