Against Risotto

For a while I've been carrying a guilty secret around with me: I don't like risotto. I mean, I would eat it if it were the only thing standing between me and starvation, but I would really never order it by choice. And with foodies all around talking up risotto, risotto appearing on all sorts of fine dining menus, I couldn't help but feel a bit, well, estranged. So I brought a little wisdom from my career to bear on my favorite hobby. In the world of academics, if you think you don't agree with an argument or ideology, the wisest scholars go out and study with the best thinker of that position. If you still aren't convinced, then you can feel secure in your opinion. Well, I think the same applies to food. So I finally had my chance to learn risotto from one of the best and I leapt at the chance. One way or another, I would finally feel secure in my opinion of risotto.

The Whole Foods in Evanston, IL offers a really wonderful demonstration cooking series, where for only $20 per person you get to sit in on a multi-course cooking demonstration with "tasting" portions large enough to satisfy a linebacker. Recently they held a class taught by Mary McMahon, a former [Charlie Trotter's] Trio chef and two time Jean Banchet award winner who now teaches at Now We're Cookin'. Though she is most famous as a pastry chef, a former Trio chef is still a former Trio chef. To learn how to make two different kinds of spring risottos in a close class setting with such a chef was an opportunity too good to pass up.

I began a quest to settle, once and for all, my opinion on risotto. The class also managed to deepen my already great appreciation of beets. But that was just the opening act. By the time I was done I had a few great tips and tricks for the kitchen, and two killer garnishes I will use again and again.


For a nice twist on a classic combination, try your next roasted beet salad with arugala. The goat cheese was rolled in finely chopped pistachios, and the balsamic vinegrette had just a hint of citrus. I was delighted and surprised by how well the additions of citrus and pistachio worked with the peppery arugala. It was a twist definitely worth replicating at home.

The second great surprise of the night was that my husband and I discovered how tasty beet greens are. I have roasted beets plenty of times and always thrown the stalks and leaves away without a thought. McMahon's class focused not only on themes of spring, but also on sustainability. So after the beet salad, we learned how to make use of the whole plant. She chopped the greens and stalks and then sauteed both in a bit of olive oil with minced garlic. This healthy side was finished off with salt, pepper, and a healthy squeeze of lemon.

While preparing the first courses, Mary shared an interesting kitchen tip that I thought you might be interested in. First, she mentioned that she just got back from a chef tasting of specialized mineral salts hosted by Chicago's famous Spice House. She said that when the chefs dipped simple apple slices into the different salts, they could taste slight differences. But when dishes were cooked with the specialty salts, none of the chefs could tell the specialty salts from regular, non-iodized salt.

Mary made two delightful garnishes, one of which is one of the more creative and memorable garnishes I have ever seen: an amazing parmesan gellato. That's right, you read that correctly: parmesan cheese gellato. Working on a double-boiler, Mary brought a cup of cream to simmer, and stirred in about one cup of finely grated parmesan cheese. She allowed us to taste the mixture before salting, and then she added a half teaspoon of salt and we tasted again. It was never clearer that effective salting amplifies the flavor of the dish (more parmesan) not the flavor of salt. Then she put the cream and melted parmesan cheese into the freezer to freeze. Remove one hour before serving and allow it to soften just until it is scoopable. Place a scoop on top of each serving to garnish.

The second garnish was a gremolata. Mary explained that gremolata is a traditional accompaniment to osso buco in Italian cooking. She explained that even though we now see all kinds of varieties of "pesto" (e.g. cilantro pesto) actually pesto is a very particular type of the broader class of gremolatas defined by the combination of basil, pine nuts, olive oil and cheese. Gremolatas in general are finely chopped or blended herbs, and may optionally contain olive oil or cheese. The most traditional gremolata includes blended flat leaf parsley, lemon peel and garlic. She demonstrated a classic gremolata for us and I found it a wonderfully healthy flavor booster.

In the end, I was convinced that lovingly standing over the stove and stirring the risotto made it creamy, but in the end I didn't think the final taste and texture together was really worth the fat and calories in the dish. I tentatively asked Mary about possibilities for lightening risotto and she politely but firmly shot me down. Her first quote was that in the professional kitchen, the wisdom is that "fat equals flavor." Fats certainly contribute to flavor, but in the interest of health I am always more interested in finding things that contribute lots of flavor relative to their fat content. Because in the end, it isn't exactly shocking if something full of butter and cheese is at least a bit tasty, but for that much butter and cheese I pretty much want to be speechless. The second comment was that she would rather eat a little amount of something very delicious than gorge herself on something less tasty. If you've read my philosophy, you know I totally agree with her. I just wasn't convinced that risotto was the sort of thing that was a smart indulgence.

So I ate the risotto, and now I can comfortably say it just isn't worth it for me. From now on I will pass on risotto whenever I see it on a menu without being haunted by the thought that I am somehow less of a foodie for it.