Visualize whirled peas: Pea-mint risotto

Peas are plentiful at the Urban Cabin. And so is mint.Visualize all that gorgeous greenness in a bowl and you have pea-mint risotto, the perfect summer meal for Seattle, aka the Emerald City, a green-filled city if there every was one.

A lovely local fume blanc (thank you Facelli Winery!) to sip on, and herbed goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms (my recipe linked here) on top. Mmm….fresh, minty, delicious. Green.

Pea-mint risotto

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin oil
• 1 large garlic clove, halved
• 1 medium-sized Walla Walla onion (or sweet onion), minced
• 1-1/2 cups arborio rice (~10 ounces)
• 4-1/2 cups stock (I used turkey stock that I’d frozen at Christmas), chicken or vegetable, warmed
• Salt and ground pepper
• 3 cups peas (I used freshly shelled English peas, but you can use one 16-ounce bag of frozen peas, thawed)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup finely shredded mint leaves
• splash or three of dry sherry (optional)

How to:

Heat stock on the stove. Then, in a large saucepan, heat the oil. Add the garlic, Walla Walla onions, cover and cook moderately over low heat until softened (about 3 minutes). Add the arborio rice and stir over moderately low heat until the grains are slightly translucent (about 2 minutes). Add 1 cup of the warmed stock and cook, stirring, until nearly absorbed. Continue adding stock, about 1 cup at a time, stirring until the stock is absorbed before adding more. Cook, stirring until the rice is al dente and suspended in a thick, creamy liquid (about 15-20 minutes total). Season with salt and pepper; discard the garlic halves. Add the peas and until just heated through (I added a couple splashes of fino sherry at this point). Stir in the Parmesan cheese and mint. Serve.

Want to visualize more deliciousness? Check out Wanderfood Wednesday!