30 and counting.....on someone else to make dinner.

I have been known to be somewhat of a control freak when it comes to cooking.  I like to do it myself.  I like to be the sole proprietor.  I like to take all the credit.  It's kind of 'my way or the highway'. 

Lately, in an effort to not die alone in my kitchen, I have eased the white-knuckle grip on the apron strings.  So the other night, my man friend made us dinner.  It was really, really good. And it was fun to watch him work.  He stroked my ego with cooking questions throughout and even let me 'bat clean up' and put on some finishing touches.  He may be something of a saint.  Below is the recipe (in his words, in the spirit of my blog).  Ladies and Gentleman, please welcome, my first ever guest chef, Mr. Cody Henderson........

Vegetable Risotto...Paella?...Risotto

Ingredients:

Olive oil
1 white onion
3 celery stalks
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
3 cloves minced garlic
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1 1/2 cups brown jasmine rice
1 cup white wine
1 cup tomato sauce
2 tbs. tomato paste
2 cups veg broth, more or less
1 tbs butter
1/2 cup grated swiss cheese
1 diced scallion
salt & pepper

"Saute chopped onion in olive oil in a risotto pot or dutch oven until tender. Add chopped celery. Cook another couple minutes. Add chopped red and green peppers and garlic. Cook more. Add mushrooms. Cook a minute more. Add rice, stir and saute with vegetables for a minute. Add white wine. This cools it off so let it heat up again. Add tomato sauce and paste, stir well. Turn down heat slightly and cover and simmer for a little while, 5-8 minutes. Check it frequently to make sure there's plenty of moisture. When the rice is just starting to soften, slowly add the vegetable broth, a little at a time, and stir gently, pretty constantly as the rice absorbs the moisture. When it starts to get dry, continue adding splashes of broth and stirring until the rice is tender. If you haven't salted and peppered yet, this is a good time to taste it and adjust. NOTE: You may not need all the broth. Once it's done, turn off the heat. Add a little extra olive oil for texture and shine. Stir in the butter. Then the cheese and scallion. It's done.

We like this served with fried plantains and arugula salad. And good hoppy beer. Not wine. Okay, you could have wine. Wine goes with everything. I made the mistake of having 2 gin and tonics."