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One of the most interesting aspects of parenthood has
been watching my three children evolve into unique individuals. Their
similarities and differences have given a whole new perspective to that
“heredity vs. environment” argument in my Psych 101 class. Nowhere is this more evident than in my daughters.
They’re both redheads (which has been easily the biggest surprise of
my life. The only redheads in my family were my grandmother’s second
cousins; my husband’s family also only had redheads a couple
generations back. If we had a dollar for every joke we’ve endured
about mailmen and milkmen, we’d have retired in luxury years ago). Both are intense and assertive. Any other similarity
pretty much stops there, although despite of — or perhaps because of
— their different mindsets, they’re very close. Ashley, our younger daughter, was our nature child. She
spent hours exploring our wooded property and the protected forest across
the road and accumulated countless pets, including injured and abandoned
animals that she tried to nurse back to health and for whom she conducted
tearful and elaborate funerals when they didn’t survive. Even so, she
hunted rabbits and wild boar with her housemates while she was in college
in New Zealand and helped help raise, slaughter, and butcher sheep for
their freezer. Then there’s Anne, who’s nine years older
than Ashley. For years she didn’t want to have anything to do with animals, dead
or alive. I’ve always attributed her aversion to an incident, which
occurred when she was a toddler, in which she saw me throwing myself onto a
snarling Doberman who was attacking our 8-pound Yorkshire terrier.
Regardless of the cause, she’s never been comfortable eating meat,
though of late she’s begun to enjoy living animals, especially her
new spouse’s cat. Anne’s husband is also a vegetarian; the cat
is not. It’s wonderful what love can do to expand one’s
perspective. It’s also made for some interesting meal
planning. Fortunately all of the omnivores in our family also enjoy
vegetables, fruits, and grains. For everyday meals, pasta, with its
infinite meatless variations, has always been a standby. When it’s
time for holidays and family celebrations such as birthdays, however,
accommodation must be made for personal favorites as well as tradition.
Over the years I’ve developed a few recipes that can stand alone
either as meatless entrées or as side dishes. The accompanying
recipe is one of my family’s favorites.
Send questions and comments to Julianne Glatz at
realcuisine@insightbb.com.
Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Exotic
Mushroom-and-Corn Risotto
Six large portobello mushrooms 6 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 cups cooked sweet corn, any liquid from the corn reserved 12 ounces exotic mushrooms such as shiitake, oyster, or cremini 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional if necessary 1/2 cup minced shallots or onion 3/4 cup dry vermouth or dry white wine 1 1/2 cups Arborio or Carnaroli rice 4 to 6 cups vegetable stock Half or full porcini bouillon cube, optional 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste Chopped flat-leafed parsley for garnish
Remove the stems from the portobellos and set them
aside. In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium
heat. Add the portobello caps, sprinkle them with a little salt, and
sauté them until completely they’re cooked through, five to 10
minutes. You may need to do this in batches. Remove the mushrooms and keep
them warm. If any liquid has accumulated in the pan, add it to any juice
you have from the corn and set it aside. Cut the portobello stems (discarding the root ends) and
the other mushrooms into bite-size pieces. Discard the woody shiitake
stems, which are not edible. Heat the olive oil in the skillet over high
heat, and when hot but not smoking, add the mushrooms. Sprinkle lightly
with salt and stir-fry until cooked through and lightly browned.
Don’t crowd the mushrooms. You may need to do this in batches. When
the mushrooms are cooked, remove the skillet from the heat, add the corn,
and set the skillet aside. In a large heavy saucepan, heat the remaining 4
tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the shallots/onions and
sauté until they’re softened but not browned. In a separate
pan heat the vegetable stock, dissolve the bouillon cube (if you are using
it), and keep it all warm. When the shallot has softened, add the rice and
sauté for a few minutes until the rice begins to turn translucent.
Increase the heat to high and add the vermouth and any liquid from the corn
and portobellos. When the wine has almost completely evaporated, reduce the
heat to medium low and ladle enough stock over the rice to cover it by
about one-half inch. Stirring constantly, add stock a ladleful at a time
whenever the level of liquid drops so that the rice is exposed. The heat
should be at just the barest simmer. Continue cooking and stirring until
the rice is tender but firm in the center (“al dente”), about
30 minutes, and all or most of the stock has been used. The rice will have
made its own sauce and should be quite runny. Warm the corn and mushrooms
in the skillet until just heated through and add them to the rice. Remove
the pan from the heat and stir in the cheese. The mixture will thicken but
should still be fairly loose. Check the seasoning and add pepper if
desired. The bouillon is salty, so if you’ve used it you may not need
additional salt. Divide the risotto evenly among the portabello caps,
sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately. Porcini bouillon and Carnaroli rice (the highest grade
of rice used for risotto) are available at Angela’s Taste of Italy,
1535 MacArthur Blvd.
This article appears in Jan 18-24, 2007.
