Bready or Not: Rice Cooker Risotto
No fooling here. I’m sharing a real recipe for Rice Cooker Risotto that will rock your world if you make risotto but hate the tedious stir-stir-stir nature of the usual version.
I have a more traditional take on risotto on Bready or Not, one that uses pancetta. I will never make this old version again.
The rice cooker is the way to go. Instead of being stuck at the stove for about an hour, babysitting a pot and stirring a lot, I get to add ingredients in two batches and then spend about 10-15 minutes stirring at the end. That’s it.
Please note that I’ve now made this several times using my Zojirushi, which holds 3 cups max. This recipe fills the bowl pretty well, which means the hardest part is not spilling ingredients during the final stirring phase. If you have a larger pot, then things will be much easier! In my cooker, the white rice is done in 45 minutes. This cooking phase will vary with machines, of course, but generally speaking, this is a recipe that will be done in about an hour with little effort involved.
Bready or Not: Rice Cooker Risotto
Equipment
- rice cooker (3 cup minimum capacity)
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons dried shallots
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
- 1/2 cup dry white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc
- 3 to 4 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth divided
- 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick) divided
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for serving
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper plus more for serving
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 ounces shredded Parmesan plus more for serving
Instructions
- In the bowl of the rice cooker, place shallots, garlic, arborio rice, wine, 2 cups broth, 4 Tablespoons butter in pieces, salt, and pepper. Close the lid and set to cook on WHITE RICE SETTING.
- As soon as the timer goes off, set the rice cooker to WARM if it does not automatically do so. Open the lid and add the lemon juice, peas, Parmesan, and 1 cup broth. Cut the last 4 Tablespoons of butter into pieces and add to bowl. Stir until the butter and cheese are melted–this is the hardest part of the whole recipe, as the bowl may be quite full.
- Drizzle in more broth about 1/4 cup at a time, stirring well after each time, until the risotto reaches the desired consistency. (Note that having leftover broth may be a good thing if you also have leftover risotto, as the risotto will thicken a lot when chilled and will need some broth stirred in to loosen it during reheating.)
- Once the consistency is right, add more cheese, salt, and pepper, if desired. Serve risotto by itself or with added meat such as chicken, and of course, more of the white wine to wash down the food.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Buttered Pecans
This Buttered Pecans recipe is very simple. In under 30 minutes, you’ll have a nice serving of toasted, sugared nuts that can be divided for use as gifts or offered up to feed people at a gathering.
Or, if you’re like me, make them for yourself and enjoy them alongside cheese for a few weeks.
These pecans are not thickly coated with sugar, though you may get some sweet globs depending on how things are stirred together at the end.
Bready or Not Original: Buttered Pecans
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 cups whole pecans
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Preheat oven or air fryer at 325 degrees.
- Combine brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Measure pecans into the baking pan. Pinch off some of the soft butter and rub it into the pecans. Repeat until all of the butter is coating the pecans. Pour on the sugar mix and stir to coat.
- Bake pecans for 5 minutes. Stir. Bake 10 more minutes. Taking care, because this stuff is hot, scoop up any liquified sugar and coat the nuts. Transfer the pecans to a plate or another pan to cool.
- Start enjoying after the nuts have cooled to a safe level. Store in a sealed container at room temperature for upwards of 3 weeks.
OM NOM NOM!
Duluth! Book Signing on April 4th
Northern Minnesota/Wisconsin folks! So long as I am not held back by weather or disaster (or disastrous weather), I’ll be signing at the Bookstore at Fitger’s on Saturday April 4th from Noon to 2pm. I’m very excited about this. Come by and say hi! Let’s talk cheese and cats and books.
Bready or Not: Sock-It-To-Me Bundt Cake
I love a good bundt cake, and this Sock-It-To-Me Bundt Cake is especially good. To me, it seems like a coffee cake with the spiced crumble on the inside!
I’ve had this recipe for years and years, clipped from a pretty old issue of Cook’s Country magazine. Their goal was to make a from-scratch version of the Duncan Hines cake mix recipe that dates to the 1970s–hence the very 1970s name.
They used a food processor, and so I did as well. It does make the cake-making extremely easy, and the crumb was light and soft, as they promised. However, the cake can be mixed by hand or with a mixer. If you do, however, be sure to chop the pecans.
Bready or Not: Sock-It-To-Me Bundt Cake
Equipment
- food processor
- large bundt cake or tube pan (12 cups)
- baking spray with flour
Ingredients
Streusel
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled a smidgen
- 1/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3/4 cup pecans
Cake
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups white sugar
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup sour cream or vanilla or plain Greek yogurt, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) melted and cooled
Glaze
- 1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons milk or half & half
- 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
Instructions
- The base recipe is written for the food processor, but the ingredients can be mixed by machine or hand as well, though the crumb will not be as fine.
- Preheat oven at 325 degrees. Use a baking spray with flour to fully coat every nook and cranny on the interior of the bundt or tube pan.
- Start by making the streusel. In the food processor, combine the flour, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans. Pulse until everything is ground down. Transfer to another bowl. Wipe out food processor (no need to do a thorough wash).
- Now it's time for the cake batter. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of the food processor, blend together sugar, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually pour in the melted butter. Add the dry ingredient mix, pulsing until just combined.
- Pour about half the batter into the bundt pan. Sprinkle the streusel to cover. Pour on the other half of the batter. Smooth out the top.
- Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick plunged into the center comes out clean. Cool for about 20 minutes, then carefully invert onto a rack to cool.
- After the cake is fully cool, mix up the glaze. The result should be thick and smooth. Place cake on cutting board or serving dish. Drizzle glaze over cake so it oozes down the sides. Let set about 2 hours, speeding the process in fridge, if desired.
- Slice and serve. Keeps well at room temperature for at least 4 days. Cake pieces can also be individually wrapped and frozen.
