Roasted Garlic, Shallot and Mushroom Risotto

This is  variant of the butternut squash risotto I've made for years. I made it using the cooking liquid from a venison pot roast but it is equally as tasty when using chicken or vegetable stock.

Ingredients:

4 cloves garlic

5 Shallots

1 lb small cremini mushrooms

2 Cups Arborio Rice

1 Qt Homemade Low Salt Vegetable Broth

3/4 cup dry white wine (Chardonnay)

1/2 lb Gruyere Cheese

4 Tbsp light butter

* Olive Oil

* Salt

* Black pepper

Tools:

Oven Safe baking dish

6 - 8 qt stock pot with lid

2 qt saucepan 

Preparation: 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

Rough chop shallots into 3/4" chunks and crush/peel garlic. In a baking dish, add a drizzle of olive oil, garlic, shallots, salt and pepper. Put in the oven and roast until it has started to brown. (approx 15 minutes). Feel free to use the broiler at the end for 2 - 3 minutes to finish. 

In a 2 qt saucepan bring vegetable broth with salt to a boil. 

In the stock pot, melt butter and add rice mixing well. Season the rice with salt and pepper and stir until well incorporated.  Spread rice around the edges and add wine again mixing well. Using a small ladle (4oz) add 2 ladles of boiling broth to the rice mixture. 

Repeat this process once the liquid has mixed in and boiled down until half of the stock has been added.  Rough chop the cremini mushrooms into quarters or halves depending on size and add to the pot with the roasted shallots and garlic (chop if necessary) mixing well.  Continue to add broth in the same increments until all broth has been mixed in with the rice. 

Using a fine blade food processor, grind up Gruyere cheese until it is almost a powder and mix in with the risotto. 

At this point, the mixture needs to simply cook until the rice is no longer crunchy being stirred frequently to ensure that all of the cooking liquid has been incorporated in. 

Serving

This serves 6 with roughly 1 cup of cooked per serving. 

For an added kick, dice up bacon or prosciutto and fry until crispy topping risotto with some crunch. 

Paleo Friendly Beef Stir Fry

Ingredients: 
5 Cloves of Garlic
1 Red Pepper
1 Red Onion
1/2 Yellow Onion
1 Bunch of Scallions
1 cup of sliced cremini mushrooms
1 Bunch of Celery
1 Pound of either Stir Fry Beef or Stew beef

1 Tbsp Coconut Aminos or gluten free soy sauce
2 Tbsp Coconut Oil

* Kosher Salt
* Black Pepper
* Onion Powder
* Garlic Powder
* Turmeric Powder
* Cumin 
* Coriander
* Paprika
* Sesame Oil

Preparation
This will require a significant amount of vegetable prep and would be best prepared with 3 medium to large size bowls and one small one. 

Ensure that the beef is cut into thinner strips (it will be easier to eat that way). If they are not to size, cut beef into strips about 1/4 inch wide and however long you please. Place into a medium bowl and drizzle with 1 tbsp of soy sauce/aminos. Season generously with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic, turmeric, cumin, coriander, and paprika.  Lightly sprinkle with sesame oil as well and let sit. 

In a small bowl, use a garlic press to crush garlic. Once all garlic has been crushed, set aside - this will be the first ingredient added to the skillet. 

In a medium bowl slice onions and peppers into reasonably thin slices (between 1/8 and 3/16 of an inch) and cut in half so the pieces are about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in length. Set aside as this will be the second set of ingredients to be added to the skillet. 

In another medium bowl cut up celery into 1/4 inch pieces. Add sliced mushrooms and dice up scallions and set aside as this will be the last set of ingredients. 

If you do not have a wok, this is best cooked in a deep stainless steel skillet (4" at least) with a cover.  Heat skillet on high and add coconut oil until it melts. After a minute, add in garlic and mix together to meld the garlic flavor with the oil. 

After a minute or two, add bowl of onions and peppers, salt and pepper and stir until they begin to soften keeping them moving to not sit on the hot pan for too long in one spot.  After softened, add the meat and again stir up keeping the mixture moving to not sit in one spot for too long. Put remaining tbsp of aminos/soy sauce in the skillet. 

Pour in last bowl of vegetables/mushrooms, mix together, lower heat to medium and cover after lightly seasoning with salt and pepper. With lid on, shake the skillet every 2 - 3 minutes to keep everything mixing together. 

Using a slotted spoon, remove vegetables and meat and place in a bowl on the side covered. Raise the heat to high and cook down the cooking liquid until it thickens and then pour over the mix. 

 Serving
Best served to be eaten with chop sticks. 

Chicken Marsala

Ingredients: 
1 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 cup of dry Marsala Wine
1/4 cup of dry Cabernet Sauvignon
1 cup of cremini mushrooms
2 pcs boneless skinless chicken 

* Kosher Salt
* Black pepper
* Flour
Preparation:
Remove stem and slice mushrooms into 1/4" slices and set aside. Season chicken with salt, pepper and coat in flour. 

In a deep walled skillet, mix butter and olive oil together over medium heat until melted. Add chicken to the pan and cook until golden browned / cooked through flipping after about 2 minutes. Add both wines and mushrooms and stir well so that some mushrooms are under the chicken, others are over and the wine coats everything.  Reduce heat to low and simmer covered for about 5 - 7 minutes until the mixture reduces down. 

Serving:
It is recommended to serve this with a side of mashed potatoes (garlic or regular) layering the chicken down first along with the mushrooms and some of the additional sauce. Serves 2. 

Grilled Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients: 
1/2 Cup of Alfredo Sauce
6 small Cremini Mushrooms (stems removed)
3/4 Cup of fresh spinach
2 pcs Boneless Skinless Chicken
112 g fettuccine

* Kosher Salt
* Black Pepper 
* Garlic Powder
* Olive Oil
Recommended to cook the chicken on a Lodge Logic Rectangular Grill & Griddle Pan (Google Affiliate Ad)Preparation:
Salt, Pepper and lightly garlic the chicken. Heat up a griddle pan with a light spray of olive oil over medium heat. Cook chicken turning once per side for grill marks. After 4 - 6 minutes (or until cooked through depending on thickness) remove from griddle set aside and let rest.  When ready to serve, slice chicken into 3/8" or 1/2" wide strips against the grain on an angle. 

Chop spinach finely and mix in with Alfredo sauce in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Mix together to ensure that the spinach is well incorporated into the the sauce. 

Spray a small skillet with a light coating of olive oil and heat over medium/low heat. Slice mushrooms into 1/4" thick slices and saute with a light salting until mushrooms soften. Once cooked through, set aside. 

Boil water seasoned heavily with salt (should taste like the sea) and boil fettuccine until al dente.  Strain and set aside. 
Serving:
Plating: 
 Half of the serving of Fettuccine in the bottom of the plate/bowl. 
 Mix together with approx 1/8 cup of Alfredo sauce
 Half of the total chicken slices
 Half of the pan of mushrooms
 Remainder of the Alfredo sauce