My latest featured article on the REI blog.

In addition to my recipe for Campfire Risotto with Woodear Mushrooms, the article also links to a pair of videos. The first one is an edited recap of my hike up to Horn Pond Hill here in Woburn, MA shortly after the February blizzard (named NEMO by some) dumped over two and a half feet of fresh snow on our neighborhood.

The second video includes step-by-step instructions on how to prepare the recipe. Be sure to check out the brand new Cooking in the Great Outdoors intro that my video producer Jeremy put together. HUGE thanks to Jeremy for creating the perfect lead-in for my video series.

If you like the music that you hear in both of the videos, click on over to the Tater webpage and check out what my friend Luke Edwards and his band are up to. Their tunes make the perfect soundtrack to any outdoor adventure.

Finally, stay tuned for some BIG NEWS regarding CITGO coming very soon. I can’t share any details yet, but I am working on some pretty cool new partnerships and a few surprises, which I hope to unveil in the coming weeks.

Until then rememer, Go Outside, Get Active, Work Up an Appetite & Start Cooking in the Great Outdoors!

The day after NEMO hit New England, I climbed to the top of Woburn Hill in knee-deep snow for a little boarding.

However, I do seem to be getting ahead of myself starting with a storm that just took place in early February. Let’s roll the clock back just a bit to November of last year. It was in the early portion of that month that time came around once again for the Master Chef live casting call to take place in Cambridge, Mass, just across the Charles River from Boston proper. Having learned a few things from my previous attempt to get myself on the radar of the Fox Casting Team, I decided to keep my dish simple, using locally sourced ingredients as usual to create a recipe that exhibited my love of outdoor cooking while highlighting some “out of the box” ingredients readily available right here in New England during the late fall and early winter.

Monkfish Katsu served over a mixture of aquacultured seaweed from main & julienne seasonal squash.

Prior to my audition, I had been playing with different ways to prepare and serve locally caught fish, such as striped bass and bluefish, that I frequently catch myself while out kayak fishing in Boston Harbor. Earlier in the year I took a large striped bass that I caught in late October and prepared it five ways (grilled, fried, Mediterranean, sushi & sashimi) for a gathering of our friends. Playing with different preparations and spice/herb combinations is always a fun way for me to experiment with ingredients that I know well and thus come up with new, flavorful recipes.

Locally caught striped Bass served 5 ways.

However, most of the species that I catch and am more familiar with are long gone and heading back south to warmer waters by the time November rolls around. As such, I need to identify a cold water fish that is typically available in New England during the winter. Enter the lovely (ok, maybe not so lovely) Monkfish. With light, briny tasting flesh that is resilient enough to stand up to the high temperatures of frying, this species made an excellent candidate for the dish that I had in mind. I have been able to purchase monkfish filets at Whole Foods Market and it is also frequently available from local New England seafood purveyors such as Red’s Best here in Boston.

Captain Henri Franco with a large monkfish during a cooperative monkfish survey aboard the F/V Mary K. (via http://www.fishwatch.gov).

The key to making this dish pop would be to highlight the flavor and texture of the monkfish without overpowering it with competing flavors or burying the light texture under too much heavy breading. The first step in maintaining the lightness of the fish while adding a little extra flavor is to marinade it, in this case by soaking the tail steaks in a mixture of buttermilk, soy sauce and Blue Hills Brewery Okto Brau. This seasonal beverage (typically brewed in the late fall and early winter) lends a nice malty taste to the dish without overpowering the natural flavors of the other ingredients. The soy sauce adds a little salt to the mixture, helping to break down the meat of the fish just enough to ensure that it will not be tough and chewy once fried. The buttermilk, a staple of my southern upbringing, adds texture to the fish and will aid in keeping the batter adhered to the fish during immersion in hot oil.

After soaking in the marinade for 24 hours, the monkfish tail filet was removed, dried and cut into 2” segments. These were dipped in a little more buttermilk and then pre-dredged in spiced flour. One of the secrets to making any fried meat even more tasty is to spice the initial flour coating and NOT the batter itself. Spices & herbs in the outer batter can often burn, adding an unpleasant and/or reduced flavor to the final product. By keeping your spices and herbs close to the meat and protected under a coating of egg, the flavors remain bold and effective. In this case I mixed a combination of homemade roasted pepper flakes, pink sea salt, coarsely ground black pepper and wasabi powder into the inner flour coating. The monkfish was then dipped in broken egg and the dredged in a mixture of panko bread crumbs and corn meal (about 80/20 mixture of panko to corn meal). Once breaded the monkfish was fried in a 50/50mixture of canola and vegetable oil at a temperature of 350 degrees for 3 – 5 minutes, until the batter is a golden brown color. It does not take long to cook monkfish, particularly when cut into 2” pieces, so it is important to be sure to keep an eye on your pan or deep fryer at all times. When properly cooked, the outside batter should be light and crispy and the monkfish inside should transition to white and flaky on the outside and slightly firmer and translucent near the center. I set the fish aside on a paper towel to cool and drain any excess oil.

While the fried monkfish was cooling, I prepared the seaweed & squash salad by rinsing and cutting the squash and zucchini into thin julienne strips. This can be done with a food processor or a standard plane grater. For the seaweed, I used slaw cut kelp from the great folks at Ocean Approved in Maine. Their products are produced via aquaculture right here in New England and come in a variety of cuts, frozen and ready to use. Simply, thaw, quick rinse and drain and you have a great substitute for everything from greens to veggies. I have even made my own seaweed sauerkraut (more on that in a later post).

Top the monkfish & seaweed squash salad with a beer infused ponzu & rice wine dressing.

To dress the seaweed and squash salad, I created a play on traditional Japanese ponzu sauce by mixing a little more of the Okto Brau beer, lemon juice, rice wine vinegar and soy sauce. This added a light, fresh, citrus flavor that won’t overpower the other ingredients and will bring an overall brightness to this dish. I lightly dressed the salad in a bowl and drained off excess liquid using a colander. I cut each section of fried monkfish into two pieces, placing each sliced side up on a bed of the seaweed & squash salad, then topped the fish with a little tobiko (smelt roe), green onion slices, some bonito flakes and a sprinkling of pecorino cheese for contrast and salt. This was served on a wooden cutting board to imply a casual outdoor setting.

Yet another amazing food photo by Erika Cole.

If there is one aspect of cooking that I can always use help with, it is in the presentation of my dishes. Having always cooked for large groups of friends and relatives, serving most meals “family style” is more within my wheelhouse. However, when participating in any culinary competition, presentation is half the battle these days. So I enlisted the assistance of photographer, Erika Cole to help compliment my dish with a bit more flair and artistry. As you can see from these photos, Erika was able to truly capture the fresh, outdoor feel that I was going for with this dish. You will just have to wait and see if I was able to get a spot on the show with Erika’s photgraphic assistance.

On my way to the top of Horn Pond Hill in Woburn, MA.

Which brings us back to recent developments here in New England. You are going to have to wait until the next blog post for additional updates on auditions and other culinary adventures on which I will be embarking in the coming year. With all the snow that has been falling in the Boston area and destinations north, I have been doing my best to get out snowboarding and snowshoeing as much as I can. For a southern born lad such as myself, the only way that I can stay sane in the cold winter months up here in the Great White North is to keep moving, stay active, pump that blood through my veins and get in a little outdoor adventure as often as possible.

Coming soon in future posts: Kitchen Surfing launches in Boston with a featured chef you may recongnize, Cooking in the Great Outdoors video series returns with a vengeance and an update on my partnership with the REI Blog. Until then, I will leave you with this short video of a recent snowboarding decent I made at Waterville Valley in NH. The winds were howling at 30+ mph (they had shut down ALL lifts but one by noon), the wind chill was sub-zero but even with those conditions, it was great to get in some turns and reconnect with the Great Outdoors.

My boy John, my wife’s cousin Genie, yours truly & my wife’s sister Amy

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to travel to San Francisco to attend the wedding of one of my wife’s childhood friends. Having never been to the city, my goal was to make the most of every minute that we were there. That included eating our way through as many neighborhoods as possible, taking morning runs through the Presidio hills and Golden Gate State Park with my new training partner Genie and of course visiting the famous intersection of Haight & Ashbury to soak in the history and culture that made this City a “must see” destination for me.

Doing our best Rock Star pose on Haight St.

The one constant theme throughout the trip was that we gathered with friends and family around food.

Taking in a German feast at Suppenkuche for Wayne’s Birthday.

We explored restaurants, cafes and street-side Tai food stands. Each new flavor and meal brought huge smiles to all of our faces and set the joyful tone for our visit.

Asian Fusion Brunch at B-Star

The highlight of the entire trip for me was having the opportunity to repay our hosts’ hospitality by cooking for a large group of family members and new friends. This is what I live for, to be able to share my love of food and those around me through a hard won evening spent in the kitchen.

My “sous chef” John working hard by my side

Setting out the Sweet Whiskey Cracklin’ Cornbread to cool

The Food is served!

The Gang is ready to eat!

And I’m Spent!

So as you prepare for the Thanksgiving and the holidays, I encourage you to take a moment to sit back, breathe in deeptly and realize all that your life has brought to you. The good AND the challenges. For those challenges may vary well lead to new opportunties yet unforeseen.

I leave you with a quote from Muhammed Ali that I recently came across in Michael J. Fox’s “Always Looking Up”.

I wish people would love everybody else the way they love me. It would be a better world.

Be good to one another and share your table with someone new. Happy Holidays.

The Master Chef Season 3 Casting Line

That all changed when I got the word that Master Chef was holding an open casting call in the Boston area in November of 2011. My wife (my fiancee at the time) and friends encouraged me to take a shot and audition for the show. I had never auditioned for anything, with the possible exception of the school play in second grade (for the record, I got the role of the “Tree”, no dialogue). On top of that, I had ZERO culinary training at the time (still do for that matter). My culinary crativity comes from the desire to connect with my friends and family through food. These factors made me quite wary about applying for a high profile cooking show on a major network like Fox. However, being a person who belives that life is short and we must create our own opportunities when and where we can, I decided to go for it and see what may come.

Waiting for my chance to wow the casting team

In the weeks leading up to the Master Chef audition, I began to connect with other local foodies and food bloggers in the Boston area who were also planning to audtion for the show. I found this community to be amazingly receptive to new members and even received recipe ideas and plating suggestions from my fellow competitors. As I result, I arrived at the open call much better prepared, with a dish that definitely looked as good as it tasted.

Bluefish, Black-eyed Pea & Quinoa Croquettes

My dish and personality got me through the first round and into a second room with eight other Master Chef hopefulls where the casting staff asked us several questions about our food knowledge and why we felt we would make good additions to the show. Two other contestants were asked to remain in the room and the rest of us were dismissed with a “Thank you for coming. This does not necessarily mean the end of your Master Chef journey. We may still call you for additional interviews”. Of course, that call never came. However, the experience inspired me to press on with my culinary adventure and I knew just how I wanted to proceed. Thus was Cooking in the Great Outdoors conceived and launched.

Our logo was designed by my good friend & fellow Phi Rick Fossum

I knew that to succeed at anything, the first and most important component had to be passion. Without it, few endeavors ever get far off the ground. In addition to loving food and cooking, I live, breath and sleep outdoor recreation. I kayak, surf, fish, rock climb, bike, hike, camp and pretty much do everything I can to spend as much time as possible in the great outdoors. My career as the Outreach Specialist for REI here in the Boston area is centered on connecting people to the outdoors through these activities, something that would bring me full circle several months later as my employer took notice of my endeavors outside of work and highlighted them to my peers within the company and eventually to the world via their online blog.

Cooking up a storm in Little Rhody

The first real step in my culinary journey began as many of my outdoor exploits do, with a call going out to my friends letting them know that I was going to be cooking up a storm along the coast of Rhode Island and that they were ALL invited. People I knew and several I had never met gathered to surf, fish, eat and commune on that late November day last year. My good friend and frequent 2old2play collaborator Jeremy Pollard served as our videographer and we shot the very first episode of Cooking in the Great Outdoors. Had it been the beginning and the end of our efforts, that single day alone would have been worth every bit of hard work, preparation and eventual disappointment at not getting the call back from the folks at Master Chef. Something truly transcending and magical happenes when people gather outside around food and good will. So it was upon this foundation that my expectations for 2012 would be built. I had no idea how far they would take me.

Chef Patricia Yeo Paticipates in the REI Camp Cooking Challenge

Since that blustery day on the Rhode Island Coastline, I have had the plesure to experience so many amazing moments through my efforts here at Cooking in the Great Outdoors. I took on an internship position at the Blue Hills Brewery to better understand the process of breweing and improve my use of one of my favorite recipe ingredients, beer, in my dishes. In the spring my recipes were noticed by Heather Atwood, driving force behind Food For Thought, and thus I had the opportunity to shoot several segments for the Taste of the Gloucester Times. Through Heather I was able to meet Christian Collins, third place contestant from Master Chef Season 2. Christian is an amazingly friendly and welcoming person despite any impressions that you have gotten from his stint on the show. Christian introduced me to another Master Chef alumni, Ben Starr, a truly “old soul” whom I cannot wait to meet some day.

I have also continued my pursuit of culinary exposure via auditions for several network shows (due to NDA requirements, I really cannot talk spefics about which shows and how far I was able to proceed in the process). Though no return calls have been received as of yet, the experience that I have gained from each interview, camera test and interaction has been priceless in helping me to form and solidify my “culinary point of view”. Finally, through my position at REI, I was able to expand on a small, local event (the REI Camp Cooking Challenge), that I created in 2009 in Hingham, MA and bring it to Boston in a much more visable format. We were very fortunate to be able to attract some of Boston’s most renowned chefs for this event, including Chef Jay Murray (Grill 23 & Bar), Chef Chris Douglass (Tavalo & Ashmont Grill) and Chef Patricia Yeo (Top Chef Masters, Season 4).

Boston Local Food Festival

And that is not the end to the opportunity. Coming up in October, I will be participating in the Boston Local Food Festival, both as a judge for the Seafood Throwdown and as a cook presenting demos on outdoor cooking via the DYI program. So please plan to join us on the Rose Kennedy Greenway on Sunday, October 7th for a day of great local food.

If it were not for my “failure” to get onto Master Chef Season 3, I would have had none of these amazing experiences. Such is life, one closed door truly opens many. So it is with great expectation and not a small amount of excitement that I am preparing to attend the open call for Master Chef Season 4, taking place in Cambridge, MA just outside of Boston on November 3rd. Even if the casting crew chooses to pass on me once again, I can hardly wait to see what opportunities arise in the aftermath. I truly believe that 2013 will be yet another stellar year. I hope you all come along for the ride.

This is a dish that can be made indoors or out. Preparing the octopus in a clay stoneware cooking vessel (if available) will get the best results. However you can use any baking or casserole dish to great effect.

Start with one pound of fresh whole baby octopus. This seafood is typically very reasonably priced ($4 – $5 per pound) and available at most higher end markets or seafood shops (I purchased mine at Whole Foods Market). The octopus should be cleaned, de-beaked (most stores that sell seafood should be happy to do this for you) and rinsed in fresh water.

Ingredients for Octopus
1 pound cleaned & de-beaked whole baby octopus
1/2 Cup Pitted Kalmata Olives
1/2 Cup finely chopped shallots
1/4 kalmata olive juice
1/4 whole capers
1/4 cup minced jalapeno peppers (may use less depending on degree of heat desired)
1 head finely chopped fresh garlic
3 – 4 tsp fresh squeezed lime or lemon juice
1 – 2 tsp dark basalmic vinegar
coarsely ground black pepper & Celtic sea salt
olive oil

Ingredients for Rice
1 cup chopped (1/2″ cubes) Mushrooms
2 cups stock (seafood or chicken)
1 cup brown ale
1 cup rice
several sprigs of fresh thyme
coarsely ground black pepper & Celtic sea salt
any leftover shallots & garlic from above
olive oil

Ingredients for Butter Sauce
4 Tbs butter
2 – 3 tsp fresh squeezed lime or lemon juice
1 tsp basalmic vinegar
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
3 cloves finely chopped fresh garlic
1 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven or grill to 450 degrees. This will be your cooking temperature. Brush your stoneware baking dish liberally with olive oil, making sure to coat all surfaces. Pour enough chopped garlic into your baking dish to thinly cover the entire bottom of the cooking surface. Next layer the baby octopus over the garlic, being sure to separate each individual bell (the “head” portion) so that they do not overlap. This will help to ensure even cooking throughout.

Chopped Kalmata Olives

On top of the octopus layer the shallots, kalmata olives & capers evenly. Drizzle balsamic vinegar, kalmata olive juice and lime juice over the entire dish. I prefer to use lime juice over lemon as it provides a slightly sweeter flavor that compliments the octopus well. Sprinkle pepper and salt to taste and add enough minced jalapenos to achieve the desired degree of heat.

Octopus is Ready for the Oven

Place a stoneware cover or foil over the dish and place into the preheated oven to cook for 30 – 45 minutes. You will know your octopus is done when the bells become dark purple and the individual arms are slightly curled. If the bells begin to crack or appear dry, remove dish from oven. You can also drizzle a little extra olive oil over the dish if it appears to be drying out before fully cooked.

While your octopus is cooking, prepare stock for rice. During Thanksgiving I had prepared oyster stuffing and then turkey soup with the leftovers from the main holiday meal. Thus I had about 2 cups of oyster/turkey stock frozen that I was able to thaw out for the rice. I try to keep a variety of frozen stocks like this in the freezer whenever possible, as they come in very handy. You can make nice stocks by slowly simmering pretty much any type of bones in a stock pan over low heat. The longer the simmer, the better the stock. Try adding herbs and getting creative. Once your stock is cooked to your satisfaction, remove bones and strain so that you are left with only liquid before cooling and placing in freezer bags for later use.

If stock is frozen, thaw in a sauce pan or small pot over low heat until completely thawed. Since I only had 2 cups of stock, I added 1 cup of brown ale (in this case Leinekugels Fireside Brown Ale) to make the 3 cups of liquid that I would need to cook 1 1/2 cups of rice.

Mushrooms in Oyster Stock

Pour 1/4 of the thawed stock into a deep saucepan and bring up to medium heat. Add salt & pepper to taste as well as any leftover shallots and garlic (be sure to save 3 cloves for the butter sauce) to the pan and saute until garlic is opaque. Add the chopped mushrooms and continue to cook for 3 – 5 minutes. Sprinkle in fresh thyme and remove mushrooms with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add remaining 2 3/4 cups of stock mixture to saucepan and bring to a boil. Once stock is boiling rapidly, add rice and reduce heat to a simmer, being sure to stir rice thoroughly to prevent it from sticking on the bottom of the saucepan. Let rice sit covered over low heat for approximately 20 minutes, stirring regularly. Once most of the stock has been absorbed by the rice, add mushrooms back to to the mix and continue to cook over low heat until all moisture is gone. If rice is still a bit undercooked once the stock has been absorbed, feel free to add a little more brown ale and continue to cook until rice is firm, but not crunchy.

Butter Sauce

At this point your octopus should be almost done, so it’s time to get the butter sauce together. Combine butter, olive oil and remaining garlic in a shallow pan over low to medium heat. Once butter has thoroughly melted, add basalmic vinegar & worcestershire sauce, stirring continually for a few minutes. Sample the sauce for flavor and pour in fresh squeezed lime juice to taste, reducing heat to low until octopus is ready to come out of the oven. When ready, pour butter sauce over the octopus while it remains in its stoneware pot and return to over for 2 – 3 additional minutes.

Remove octopus from oven and plate over rice, being sure to spoon out and add butter sauce and juices over whole dish. Garnish with a little more fresh thyme and perhaps some additional minced peppers and sure warm.

This dish is sure to wow your friends and family and makes for excellent leftover the next day. Once again, if you have stone cookware that is grill safe, try preparing this recipe outside while basking in the heat of a fire and sharing a brown ale or two with your friends.

Enjoy!

Start with 4 whole chicken breasts with skin on

Marinade

1 12oz bottle of Pipleline Porter by Kona Brewing Co.

6 cloves garlic (finely diced)

1 cup finely chopped & pureed sweet red bell pepper

50 ml (one nip) of sweet whiskey or bourbon

4 tsp honey or agave nectar

4 tsp soy sauce

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp black bean paste

2 tsp red chili paste or tabasco sauce

(For the adventurous, finely dice one small habanero pepper & add to mix)

Dry Rub

3 tsp fresh sage (dried & finely chopped)

3 tsp fresh basil (dried & finely chopped)

3 tsp fresh thyme (dried & finely chopped)

3 tsp fresh oregano (dried & finely chopped)

3 tsp fresh coarsely ground black pepper

3 tsp lemon pepper

1 tsp course sea salt

1 tsp dried cumin

Combine marinade ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until uniform consistency is reach. Pour marinade over chicken wings in a glass bowl and let wings soak in marinade refrigerated for at least 6 hours (leave for 24 hours for best results).

Once ready to cook, preheat grill to 450 degrees and remove wings from marinade, retaining liquid for later use. Using a non-flammable silicone brush, pre-treat grill surface with a think layer of olive oil to prevent meat from sticking.

Place wings over indirect heat (preferably 3 – 4″ above direct flame). Sear one side of wings and then reduce heat to 350 degree. Liberally sprinkle dry rub over wings to taste & drizzle marinade over meat every 10 – 15 minutes. Do not rub marinade onto wings as this will remove much of the rub. Allow wings to cook until skin is a dark golden brown color (typically 30 – 40 minutes).

For a nice addition, mix a salad of fresh watercress, jicama & orange slices and dress with olive oil, red wine vinegar & a small amount of orange juice. Sprinkle salad with grated pecorino romano cheese and serve at room temperature with cold mug of Pipeline Porter.

For more great outdoor cooking ideas follow Great Outdoors Cooking on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/OutdoorsCook .

Since we began this website, I have had the distinct pleasure to meet and interact with some very talented fellow food bloggers. I am consistently impressed with and inspired by the creations that my online peers create. That is why, when my good friend Chris Delgroso gave me a heads up about the Marx Foods Integrale Rice Gauntlet, I wanted to try my hand at creating a version of risotto that would remain true to our focus on Cooking in the Great Outdoors.

The Integrale Gauntlet consists of three Stages:

Round 1: Savory Risotto Challenge Voting Method: Public Poll

Because this is a fantastic risotto rice, that is how we’ll start this challenge. Create an irresistible, original risotto recipe featuring Integrale rice. You are welcome to use any additional ingredients you would like, but this risotto has to be savory. Links to the recipes from this first round will all be published on our blog and put to a public vote to narrow down the field. The top 10 bloggers will move forward.

Round 2: Dessert Risotto Challenge Voting Method: All-Inclusive Internal Vote

This is the sweet round – create an original rice pudding (or “dessert risotto”) recipe featuring the Integrale. Again, you can use any additional ingredients you’d like, so long as you make a sweet treat. These recipes will be voted on via an internal vote – each of the participating bloggers will vote for their top two favorite recipes (other than their own), and the Marx Foods staff will vote for their top 5 recipes (5 votes total). The 5 bloggers with the most votes from this round will move forward to the final round.

Round 3: Photo Challenge Voting Method: Marx Foods Staff Pick

The last hurrah! For the final phase, it’s all about presentation. This is the photo round! We want to be wowed to the point of drooling by the photo and the recipe. Create any original recipe of your choosing with the Integrale rice, just make sure it LOOKS as good as it tastes. The submissions will be judged by our photographer, photo assistant and videographer to select one winner.

Now many aspiring cooks (and let’s be clear, I am a “cook”, not a “chef”) tremble at the very thought of attempting to prepare risotto, and for good reason. Creating a truly classic risotto takes time, practice and perhaps a little divine intervention along the way. After reading Heather Atwood’s lengthy and informative introduction for her entry into the Integrale Rice Gauntlet I soon realized that I would not only be competing against my fellow bloggers, but going up against a rich history and tradition itself in taking up this challenge.

From the beginning, the key factor for me was to create a quality risotto recipe with the Integrale Rice while keeping the process itself accessible to my followers and faithful to my theme of inspiring great outdoor cooking. Since Integrale Rice is organically harvested and retains it’s outer bran (which is typically removed from most traditional arboreal rices), I knew that the raw, nutty flavor would lend itself well to my style of cooking. I also wanted readers to be able to prepare this dish in a variety of conditions, either on the deck while hosting a party or cooked right on a camping stove while on the trail. To this end all the ingredients that I chose had to be able to survive transport and storage in a backpack and thus not require cooling to avoid spoiling. I also wanted to choose at least one ingredient that could be sourced “in the wild”. That is when I decided on the dish you see below, which combines fresh herbs, a distinct and different fat source (key to any good risotto) and other ingredients that an outdoor cook could conceivably pick from the trail side (wild mushrooms, garlic or green onions) or catch from a nearby stream (brown trout).

Risotto purists will also note that my dish lacks the creamy texture so coveted in more traditional recipes. This is not a flaw in technique, but a purposeful strategy to highlight the wild, bran-rich nature of Integrale Rice. My goal was to create a risotto that blended this unique rice’s more robust, grainy texture with the wildness of the other ingredients, resulting in a dish that feels like it was prepared next to an open fire as the sun sets upon the western bank of a favorite stream. I wanted to capture the essence of Cooking in the Great Outdoors. I hope you agree that I was successful. If you do, please head over to Marx Foods and vote for this recipe in the Integrale Gauntlet.

Ingredients

This recipe will require some preparation, so set aside a few hours two nights before you plan to serve your dessert to allow time to get all of your ingredients in order. Since the key to success for this recipe will require that your ingredients remain together in a cohesive ball when you finally cook your arancini, you will need to prep and chill both the cherry compote and risotto for at least 24 hours prior to cooking (48 hours is ideal).

Cherry Compote

The First step will involve the creation of a thick, sweet and succulent cherry compote to serve as the sauce for your arancini. Begin by rinsing, pitting and removing the stems from 1 1/2 lbs of fresh cherries. Once your cherries have been prepped, take 8 oz. of sweet whiskey and place in a sauce pan over low heat. I prefer to use Jack Daniels Tennessee Honey Whiskey for all of my recipes that call for a sweet whiskey infusion. This brand has a nice bold finish while not being overly sweet.

Slowly bring the temperature of the whiskey up until you can start to see a little bit of steam coming off the liquid. At this point, add the pitted cherries to your saucepan and stir regularly, making sure that all the fruit is evenly coated and covered with the liquor. Continue to stir your fruit mixture while adding the agave nectar and brown sugar to the mix.

Once all the sugars have dissolved into the whiskey and you have a homogenous mixture of liquid and cherries, slowly bring the entire mixture up to a boil. Just as the mixture begins to bubble, burn off the liquor using a grill lighter. Continue stirring until all the flame dissipates from the sauce pan and then continue to bring up the boil on the mixture. Use caution here and do not raise the temperature of your cherry mixture too high, too fast or it will end up boiling over and you will have to start over (not to mention clean up a sticky mess from your range top).

Continue to boil and stir your compote mixture until the cherries are a deep, dark red and the liquid has reduced to about 2/3 of the original volume. Remove the sauce pan from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

Once the compote mixture has cooled to room temperature, place contents of your sauce pan into a food processor and blend on medium until the cherries have taken on a smooth, jelly-like consistency. Transfer compote into a glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill. You will know that you compote is ready when the mixture adheres to a spoon when held upside down.

Risotto

For this dish we took a more classic approach to preparing the rice, with one major alteration – we will be using a milk stout to serve as our liquid in place of water. We chose Southern Tier Brewery’s Double Milk Stout in this case for its rich text and slightly sweet, chocolatey finish, as it lends itself well to our dessert application. Since this brew contains lactose (milk sugars), it also adds a nice creaminess that will make this a truly classic risotto with regard to texture.

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. While your butter is melting, place the contents of two 12 oz bottles of stout into a separate sauce pan over low to medium heat. The goal is to bring the beer temperature up to match that of your rice, so be sure to keep it at a nice simmer and do not let it come to a boil. Once the butter has melted add the Integrale Rice and stir consistently, ensuring that all of the rice is evenly coated with butter. Once the rice has taken on a nice golden brown color, add the warmed stout one ladle at a time, making sure that all of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice before add the next ladle of beer. Continually to stir the rice during this process to ensure that no rice sticks to the bottom of the sauce pan and burns.

Once the rice has become slightly al dente (firm, but not crunchy), slowly add 1/2 cup of coconut milk that has been allowed to come to room temperature. Stir in the milk and continue to simmer the rice until the last of the liquid has been absorbed.

If you have added your stout and coconut milk slowly, allowing each ladle of liquid to be fully absorbed by the rice before adding the next, your risotto should have a nice, thick, creamy texture. A good indicator that you have used correct technique in adding your liquid will be that the spoon you are using to stir the rice will have a thick, moist film of starch on it, but the rice itself will not actually stick to the spoon. Allow your risotto to cool to room temperature. Once cooled, place risotto into a glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place into the refrigerator for cooling for at least 24 hours. As with your compote, it is ideal if you can leave the risotto cooling for 48 hours as this will result in more cohesive, tight arancini ball when it is time to put them in the deep fryer.

Cheese Mixture

At this point have one more bit of prep to do before you can call it a night. Finely grate the cheddar cheese into a bowl and set aside. Using a heavy knife, chop the goat’s milk cheese as finely as you can and add to the bowl with the grated cheddar. Hand mix the two cheeses until they are evenly distributed into a nice ball. Place cheese mixture into a a glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours to solidify.

Sit back and crack open one of those Milk Stouts, you have earned it! All your basic prep is done and in 24 – 48 hours you will be ready to form your risotto and cheese into nice, round arancini and place them into the deep fryer. Relax and enjoy the rest of your evening knowing that is a night or two, your friends will be singing the culinary praises of your sweet, sticky desert.

Time to Fry!

After allowing your risotto and cheese mixtures to chill for 24 hours (ideally for 48 hours if possible), it’s time to form your arancini and put them into the fryer. It will make the whole process much easier if you pre-make all of your arancini into nice round spheres BEFORE you start to fry. This will make the whole frying process run much smoother and will ensure that you are able to pay attention to the arancini as they cook so that they do not burn.

The first step will be to roll all of your cheese mixture into nice, round balls about 1″ in diameter. You don’t want the cheese balls to be too large as they will ultimately determine the size of your finished arancini. If the finished product that goes into the fryer is too big, the arancini will not heat thoroughly throughout and the centers will be cold and un-melted. Place each cheese ball onto a clean cooking sheet as you make it. This will help you maintain consistency with regard to size from one arancini to the next.

Once you have rolled all the cheese mixture into spheres, take each one and coat it with an even layer of risotto, making sure to cover 100% of each ball without packing on too much rice. Ideally, you want to have a layer of rice that is approximately 3 – 4 grains thick. Once again, it is important to be consistent as you want a uniform product when all is said and done. If you are successful in creating arancini that are the same size, then each one should take the same amount of time to cook at a consistent temperature. Lightly wet your hands and be sure to mold each rice ball by firmly compressing the rice around the cheese between the palms of both hands. Once compressed, you can roll the rice covered cheese between your palms to get a nice, uniform round shape. Once again, this will help to ensure that your arancini will cook evenly once placed in the hot oil. Place each finished rice ball onto a clean baking sheet

When you have used up all of your risotto and cheese, you can proceed to the final step of readying your arancini for frying by adding the breading over the rice. First, mix the Italian bread crumbs and corn meal into a bowl until mixture is evenly distributed. Crack four eggs into a glass bowl and stir vigorously with a fork to break the yolks. Once the eggs are well mixed, place each ball in plain all-purpose flour, then into the egg and finally into the bread crumb/corn meal mixture. Be sure that each rice ball is completely covered with flour, and then egg and finally breading. Remember, maintaining uniform consistency between each arancini is key here. Place each finished arancini onto a clean baking sheet.

The picture above shows each stage of the arancini making process: 1) Cheese ball 2) Rice over the cheese and finally 3) Bread crumbs/corn meal over the rice. If you have maintained the proper thickness at each stage, your arancini should each be about 2″ in diameter and almost perfectly round.

Preheat your oil to 350 degrees (fahrenheit). Once the oil has come up to temperature, test it by adding a single arancini and cooking for about 2 – 3 minutes, turning the rice ball over several times with a spook or spatula to make sure that it is cooked evenly. Remove the arancini from the oil when the outside is a nice golden brown. Place cooked arancini on a cooling rack or on a plate covered with paper towels and allow to drain. Continue to cook the rest of your arancini, making sure not to add too many to the oil at one time (the arancini should not be touching while in the hot oil).

While your arancini are cooling, remove the cherry compote mixture from the refrigerator and allow to warm to room temperature. Once the compote has sufficiently warmed up, spread a small amount on a plate using a spoon or spatula. Place two or three cooked arancini directly on the compote (for dipping by your guests) and garnish with a few mint leaves. Serve warm for best results.

Check out the Competition

To see what the other Integrale Gauntlet contestants made for the Sweet Risotto Round, head on over to the Marx Foods blog and decide which one you want you would like most to taste.

After creating two risotto dishes we find ourselves competing with five other amazing food bloggers for the title of Integrale Risotto Master. The key to this last round of the competition is to create a dish that is so visually appealing that the judges will want to devour the submitted photo. As stated in the Round 3 guidelines below “It’s all about the presentation.”

Round 3: Photo Challenge Voting Method: Marx Foods Staff Pick

The last hurrah! For the final phase, it’s all about presentation. This is the photo round! We want to be wowed to the point of drooling by the photo and the recipe. Create any original recipe of your choosing with the Integrale rice, just make sure it LOOKS as good as it tastes. The submissions will be judged by our photographer, photo assistant and videographer to select one winner.

Now we will be the first to admit that presentation is not our strong suit here at Great Outdoors Cooking. Heck, we typically eat outside, frequently in the woods, at the beach or even in the rain. Creating great recipes that reflect our love of the outdoors is generally our focus. We tend to leave the nouveau cuisine plate designs (and the pathetically small portions that typically go with them) to those who are charging $30 for an appetizer. So when we learned that the ultimate winner of this competition would be judged on how pretty the plate looked, we were understandably a little apprehensive.

So the first step was to determine what featured ingredient would really make the judge’s mouths water while maintaining our focus on locally sourced ingredients that reflect our love of the outdoors. The obvious answer was “Oysters!”. Nothing makes our mouths water like the sight of fresh bivalves on the halfshell or the deep golden goodness of fried seafood. So we decided to make a risotto that featured a medley of preparations of our favorite shellfish. We also knew that color would be important, so we chose to incorporate bright red roasted bell peppers and vibrant green serrano chilis into the rice. The end result looks almost as good as it tastes – and it tastes AMAZING. So check out our recipe for Oyster Risotto below and let us know what you think.

Ingredients