Yummy, Easy, Impressive Asparagus Risotto

School is finally over which is a relief because that means I can start to actually cook again. For the two weeks that exams took over my life, I found myself surviving on the repeated meal of baked mac n cheese and leftover chocolate cake from my birthday a couple weeks ago. After that ran out, I don't even remember how often or what I ate, my entire concentration was on staying focused and getting myself through finals. So you can imagine the state of my apartment, not to mention my kitchen. It looked as if it hadn't been cleaned in a month. Absolutely disgusting! Now that I have a chance to breath, and the summer weather is starting to sneak in, I was able to spend the beginning of my day cleaning and organizing everything in my kitchen.

I wanted to cook something for lunch that simultaneously fulfilled my desire to have real food and use as much food in my fridge as possible. Pulling from the fridge frozen asparagus, cilantro, onions, and some garlic, I viewed my selection and got the rice from the cupboard, deciding to make some sort of rice veggie thing. I thought at first, I'll just make some rice and put the cooked veggies on top. Then I thought, "I wonder if I could make a really simple risotto out of this??" I had never made a risotto, and knowing the product's reputation, I was nervous it would be really difficult. I decided to look up someway to cook a risotto really easily and came across a recipe that used a rice cooker. What a great idea! Not only would the non-stick minimize a sticky clean-up, but I could do the entire recipe in one pot. Sounds great! I got out my rice cooker, and got to work.


Turns out--not so much work. It was so simple! And when my boyfriend tasted it, he couldn't believe how good it was. So here is my recipe for Asparagus Risotto, made in a rice cooker:

Asparagus Risotto
adapted from Jessica Harlan's recipe at about.com
(my inspiration for using a rice cooker!)

You will need:
(keep in mind, you can be very creative with the veggies and herbs, but this worked really well for me) 
-8-10 shoots of asparagus, cut into 2 inch pieces ( I used frozen, but you can use fresh)
-1 sweet onion, diced (you can use a small yellow onion, it will work just as well)
-1 clove garlic, crushed
-2 Tablespoons butter
-2 1/2 cups chicken or veggie broth
-a handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
-1 cup rice (I used Jasmine, but you can use whatever you have)
-1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
-pepper
-rice cooker ( you can do this recipe in a medium saucepan too)

1. Turn your rice cooker on and melt butter in the bottom of the pot (I don't know what else to call the rice cooker pot thing)

2. Add onion and garlic and saute in butter for a couple minutes. If your rice cooker only has an on/off setting, put the lid on so that the cooker creates more heat to do this.

3. Add the rice and broth. If you are using fresh asparagus, add it now. Cook the mixture covered with lid for 20 min.. Halfway through the time (10 min.), stir the mixture and if you're using frozen asparagus, add it now.

4. When the time is up, make sure the rice is cooked either al dente or fully cooked and that the broth is almost all absorbed. There should still be a little wetness in the mixture (it shouldn't be dry).

5. Add the cilantro and mix in. Add cheese and a little more butter if you want. Mix in until cheese melts and is no longer dry. Finally, pepper to taste. Serve in bowls with a sprig of cilantro and (if you want to be really fancy- fresh grated Parmesan) on top. Yummy, easy, and quite impressive if I can say so myself.

Hope you try this recipe and enjoy!! Try adding different herbs and veggies. Try adding lemon. Be creative! This serves about 2 people.

Happy cooking!

-Kristin