Fun With Carbs

I’m having a love affair with risotto. It’s easy, it’s versatile and it makes a truly elegant meal, even on an average Monday.

It’s also been a way for me to use up cups of homemade lobster stock, which I made and froze post-Christmas.

I had designs on a seafood chowder or some kind of soup, but a first, wildly successful attempt at this risotto left me wanting more – and now my stock supply has dwindled.

On the second attempt, I added a can of lump crabmeat for extra seafood flair. It was a good move.

(By the way, this is my first crack at “food styling.” Like?)

Lemony Seafood Risotto (Serves about 4)

1 1/2 cup arborio rice
1 large shallot, minced
3 large cloves of garlic, minced (or adjust amount to taste, I love garlic)
4 tbsp olive oil or butter
4 cups heated seafood stock
1/2 cup white wine (I like oaky Chardonnay)
Juice of one lemon
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp fresh or dried thyme
1 lb. fresh or frozen (thawed) shrimp
1 can of lump crabmeat

Heat 2 tbsp butter or oil in a saucepan. Saute the shallots and garlic until golden brown. Pour in arborio rice and stir so that the shallots and garlic completely coat the grains. Add thyme, pepper, wine and lemon juice and stir until absorbed. Add 1 cup warm stock, stirring until absorbed.

Continue cooking for 15-20 minutes, adding remaining liquid 1 cup at a time, until the rice takes on a creamy texture.

In a frying pan, heat 2 tbsp oil or butter and saute shrimp until pink. Saute crabmeat in remaining oil. Chop shrimp into small pieces and stir into risotto mixture, then fold crabmeat into mixture. (For presentation, you may want to reserve several whole shrimp to top risotto servings.) Remove from heat and serve immediately.