Edamame & Mushroom Risotto

The other day on Facebook I said I was going to work my way through my pantry and freezer and cook all weekend without going to the market. Which if you think about it has many benefits, from cooking at home and not eating out, eating healthier since you are eating home, and eating things on hand so they do not expire or go bad.

After I made this post I began to think ... can i really do this? and my husband encouraged me that I could. But keep in mind when I made this I did some modification, for some items that I did not have and made do with others.

The thing with me is a meal still has to have tons of flavor and one I would cook again even if I used ingredients from the pantry and freezer. So after looking in the pantry and the freezer I started with Risotto. I know risotto is not the easiest "rice" dish to make, but it sure is yummy. The best thing about this version is the edamame (i.e. soy beans), they are full of protein and so good for you. This dish gives you the opportunity to eat a vegetarian meal and not miss the meat.

This is what I did ...



Edamame & Mushroom Risotto

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 small can of sliced mushrooms, drained

1 lb. of frozen edamame

3 cups of chicken broth mixed with 1 1/2 cups of water

1 small onion, chopped
1 1/3 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup white cooking wine
1/8 teaspoons black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Romano cheese

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add drained mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Cook edamame, following the directions on the package, Drain, cool, and remove beans from pods. Add to the skillet with mushrooms.

Chicken broth and water should be placed in a sauce pan and heated over medium-high heat, to simmer.

In a second sauce pan heat remaining oil over medium-high heat, and saute the onion. Add the rice to the sauteed onion, and stir until rice is coated with oil. Add the wine and cook till wine is absorbed. Add 1 ladle full/1/2 cup of simmering broth to mix. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the broth is absorbed. Continuing doing this until all the broth is absorbed. This is a bit of a process since you have to stay with your risotto and stir in between each added 1/2 cup of broth. This should take about 30 minutes.

Heat the mushroom and edamame and stir into the risotto. Remove the risotto from the heat and add 1/4 cup of Romano cheese.

The other 1/4 cup of cheese can be sprinkled over each bowl before serving.

As you can see from the picture I also made chicken teryarki, this I will blog about at a later date. When my husband ate this he was so happy. One bowl is so filling it is all you will need.

YUM!!!