Toasted Corn Risotto

It’s Sunday night with pouring rain, chirping crickets and I’m back on the blog again. I admit I’ve been a little (well maybe more than a little) slack on keeping up with my blogging responsibilities. I definitely feel the pressure to post, especially after being bailed out last week by a guest writer. Given the size of my backlog of recipes and pictures, lack f materials is no excuse. It just a matter of discipline. Well, here’s a recipe that should make up for my slackness. Toasted Corn Risotto. It’s my own recipe so you can only get it here! It’s sweet, rich, satisfying and can be vegetarian, or be match with anything from fish to grilled steak. Better yet, it’s prime corn season.

Ingredients

• 4 ears of farm fresh corn



• 2 tablespoons of butter



• 2 tablespoons of butter


• 1 tablespoon olive oil


• 1/3 cup finely chopped onion (preferably a sweet variety such as a Vidalia)


• 1 garlic clove, finely minced


• 3 tablespoons of finely chopped celery




• 5 cups of stock, preferable homemade (I used chicken, but a vegetable or corn cob stock would work equally well)


• 1 ½ cups of Arborio or Carnoli rice



• ½ cup heavy cream


• ¼ cup grated parmesan


• Salt and pepper

Method
Prepare the corn by peeling and cutting the kernels off the cobs using a sharp knife. I like to cut them in a large metal bowl to keep corn kernels from flying everywhere. You can keep the cobs (and freeze them if necessary) to make a really great corn cob stock (which incidentally, would be perfect as the stock base for this recipe). Split the corn kernels into two batches of about 1/3 and 2/3rds. Put the smaller batch in a food processor and puree. It will look a lot like scrambled eggs! Set aside for the moment.

Heat a sauté pan with the first batch of butter. Add the larger batch of corn and cook on moderate to low heat, tossing regularly until nicely toasted. Season with salt and pepper to taste set aside.

Heat the stock in a separate pot, and keep at a low simmer.

Begin the risotto by heating the second batch of butter and oil a decent-sized sauce pan. Add the onions, garlic and celery, and sauté over low heat until softened (about 5 minutes). Add the pureed corned and cook for another minute or two. Add the rice and toss until nicely coated. Mixing with a wooden spoon, add a ½ cup of heated stock. Stir over low to moderate heat until the stock is almost completely absorbed. Repeat with additional ½ cup portions of stock. Stir regularly to prevent sticking. The trick is to adjust the heat to ensure the rice doesn’t cook too fast or too slow. It should take about 18 minutes to absorb almost the entire 5 cups of liquid. Save about ¼ cup for the end. The rice should be tender but still firm (al dente) at the end. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

About 5 minutes before the rice is ready, re-heat the toasted corn. Add the heavy cream, heat through and season to taste. Remember that Parmesan cheese is salty, so it is better to go a little light and add more salt later if necessary.

When the rice is ready, add the remaining stock, the toasted corn mixture and the parmesan cheese. Toss well and serve immediately.

To serve
We had it with grilled, marinated shrimp (as shown) and followed with grilled stripped bass. Both worked extremely well with the risotto. For a wine, choose a really good, oaky, chardonnay. We had a 2002 Kistler, Vine Hill Vineyard, but any high end, barrel fermented chardonnay should work fantastically. The sweetness of the corn mixed with the pan toasting emphasizes the toasty oak barrel flavors of the chardonnay while boosting the fruit flavors. It is a match made in wine heaven!