Cook Local

Yes, I know that anyone who reads this blog is now thinking that I should change the name to "Risotto Local". But really, when you've been avoiding rice like the plague for 2 years and finally you can have it again, you tend to go a little crazy.

For the past couple of weeks we've been curiously hovering around the Foraged and Found booth looking at something called "sea beans". Also known as samphire, these are not strictly beans. Samphire grows in the rocky salt-sprayed regions along the sea coast and coastal marshlands. It's an annual plant, growing in the fall and winter and producing in the spring.

So last week, we decided to take a chance and bought some. A quick search on the net yielded a few different recipes. We went with crab and samphire risotto. This dish can easily be served as a side or a main dish.

Ingredients (* = local, & = organic)

• 10 oz Emmer *& (or arborio rice)
• 1/2 lb samphire *
• 1/2 pound crab meat
• 1 small onion, finely diced *&
• 2 cloves of garlic *&
• 1/2 teaspoon saffron
• 2 tablespoons parsley *
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter &
• 3 tablespoons olive oil &
• 2 tbsp lemon juice &
• 4 cups vegetable stock &
• 4 tablespoons white wine
• 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Chop everything (the onions and the garlic). I diced everything rather finely.
2. If the samphire has any brown stems, remove those and rinse.
3. Set a large pot of water on the stove and get it boiling. (Do not salt the water).
4. Parboil the samphire for 2-3 minutes. It should turn a slightly brighter green. Rinse in cold water to stop it from cooking further and set it aside.
5. Now, you'll need two pans on the stove for the rest of the recipe. Pour the vegetable stock in the smaller of the two pans and set it to medium-low. You don't want it to boil, but you want it warm.
6. In the other large stock pot, melt a tablespoon of butter with a little bit of olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 4-5 minutes until both are soft.
7. Add the emmer or rice and stir to coat with the oil and butter mixture. This process should only take a minute or two.
8. Add the white wine to deglaze the pan. Cook until most of the wine has been absorbed.
9. Now, add the hot stock, one ladle at a time. Stir the risotto regularly. When the first ladle of stock has just about all cooked off, add another one. Lather, rinse, repeat.
10. When you're out of stock, mix in the lemon juice, crab, parmesan, and samphire. When you start adding the samphire, it will look like a lot. In fact, you might be tempted to only add half of it. However, keep mixing it in. It will combine nicely and if you have a little extra, don't worry. Enjoy!