INSALTA DI RISO RECIPE INSPIRED BY THE BOOK, "A TAVOLA!" - FEATURED THIS MONTH IN THE CHEF PATRICK COOKBOOK CLUB AT BARNES & NOBLE AT MACARTHUR CENTER IN NORFOLK
Yesterday's Chef Patrick Cookbook Club at Barnes & Noble at MacArthur Center in Norfolk was a great success. From 1 until 3 p.m., about 20 folks came by to talk about the featured book, A Tavola!, as well as share some of their favorite Italian recipes and discuss the culinary goings-on around Hampton Roads.
Two TCC (Tidewater Community College) culinary students, Sean Harrison and Malvin Lampley, also came by to share their insight and discuss what they are learning at the school, located just across Monticello Avenue in downtown Norfolk.
Inspired by the recipe Insalata di Riso on page 44 of the book, I cooked up a rice salad using fresh ingredients, many of which I purchased the day before during my visit to the Old Towne Curb Market in downtown Smithfield.
I also used some of my Tomato Dipping Sauce as an ingredient in the dish.
Also, because the vegetables were so fresh, I diced them fine and tossed them in uncooked; if you prefer to steam, roast or otherwise cook your vegetables, feel free to do so.
One of the things I really like about this recipe is how adaptive it is. I used vegetables which are fresh and in season and that I had on hand. In a few weeks, you could use sweet potatoes, butternut squash, acorn squash and pumpkin. In the early spring, you could use some of the sweet young veggies coming into market.
Also, you could add some animal protein like steamed shrimp or grilled chicken or cubes of fresh mozzarella. It is a dish that is very easy to personalize.
Here is my version of Insalata di Riso --- email me at ASKCHEFPATRICK@GMAIL.COM with some ideas on how you'd like to mix it up!
INSALATA DI RISO
Ingredients:
1 cup Arborio rice (you can substitute regular white rice)
Extra-virgin olive oil as needed
1 zucchini, diced small
1 yellow squash, diced small
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 red bell pepper, diced small
1 portabello mushroom, cap and stem diced small
1/2 cup cold tomato sauce (I used my TOMATO DIPPING SAUCE)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Method
Prepare rice, drain, and while still warm and add enough olive oil to flavor to your taste. Cool to room temperature and place in refrigerator while preparing vegetables. Dice vegetables and add to a medium bowl. Drizzle on a little more olive oil, tomato sauce and salt and pepper and gently toss to mix. Add rice and chopped basil to the bowl and gently toss to mix, adding more olive oil as desired. Chill until ready to serve. Yields between 3 and 4 cups.
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MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW FOR THE NEXT CHEF PATRICK'S COOKBOOK CLUB.
The next Chef Patrick's Cookbook Club will meet at the Barnes & Noble at MacArthur Center in downtown Norfolk on Friday, 18 September from 5:30 until 7:30 p.m. Stop by right after work!
The featured cookbook will be: The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook: Home Cooking from Asian American Kitchens by Pat Tanumihardja.
Read more about it HERE.
Chef Don Averso from TCC's culinary program and some of his students will be doing cooking demonstrations with plenty of samples!
The cookbook club is free and open to all; the meetings are very informal and touch on the featured book as well as other favorite dishes and what's happening in the culinary scene of the area.
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