I wanted to share this recipe with you as soon as I took my first bite, but that would have been rude and my dinner would have gotten cold, so I decided to wait until right after I finished eating. Which was when I discovered that my internet was broken!
Those of you who know me well know I don’t handle internet outages well, especially when I have important things to blog about! But, I’ll tell you, it was worth the wait. And it’s still springtime, and you can still find ramps at the farmer’s market, so I don’t feel so bad about holding out on you.
Have you ever had ramps before? Every spring, people go crazy over them. I had to see for myself this year, so I ordered some from Fresh Direct, and their mild-and-sweet oniony flavor is really delicious. And pretty!
Have you ever made risotto before? We have, but this is way better. I think it’s because I made a way less cheesy version (cheese as just a garnish!), which made it much lighter and springier, and also because of the homemade vegetable broth, which really makes all the difference. Jessica was generous enough to give me a quart of homemade vegetable stock, and I wouldn’t make this dish any other way! Also, it’s really not so hard. Just involves lots of stirring.
Ramp Risotto with Peas and Lemon
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- olive oil
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1 bunch ramps, stems chopped, leaves intact, separated
- 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup peas (frozen works!)
- zest and juice of a lemon
- grated parmesan cheese for garnish
- salt, to taste
Directions:
- Chop up your shallot, garlic, and the bottom part of your ramps.
- Put the veggie broth in a small pot and heat it up on the stove.
- Put some olive oil in a pot over medium heat. I used my Dutch oven. Add the shallot, garlic and ramps and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Season with salt.
- Add the rice and stir well. Let the rice get translucent, too.
- Add the wine and stir until it dissolves.
- Slowly, about 1/2 cup at a time, add the broth, stirring constantly, and adding more when all is dissolved.
- When you’re nearing the end of the broth, taste to make sure the rice is fully cooked. You might need a little more or less than 4 cups.
- Add the peas and ramp leaves.
- Turn off the heat and add lemon zest and juice. Stir well.
- Garnish with fresh parmesan cheese and serve.
