OLS Week 3: Spelt Risotto with Fresh Peas and Spring Garlic

For my meal this week, I focused on the star ingredient that really got me excited at this week's farmers' market. Spelt from Cayuga Pure Organics. The friendly representatives at the greenmarket table encouraged me to use the spelt as I would with any other rice.

Since it's been a gloomy June, I wanted to try the spelt in a risotto. I sauteed some local onions and fresh spring garlic in olive oil with a bit of black pepper. I then sauteed the spelt and added about a cup of the local wine that I used in OLS week 1. I simmered that down and added batches of warm chicken stock as one would with regular risotto. I have to say that the stock came from Trader Joe's because I was so excited about having local onions, garlic, wine, and grains that I skipped over the stock when mentally compiling ingredients. One of my projects this weekend will be make up some stock with local chicken and/or vegetables so I can avoid that in the future.

Once the spelt became risotto-like, I tossed in some fresh shelled peas, grated some fresh pecorino-style cheese from Valley Shepherd and topped with some basil. It looked beautiful, but I must admit that it didn't work out quite as well as I had hoped. The spelt is very chewy and probably should be soaked before the risotto process is started. We ended up with a very concentrated wine/broth sauce and chewy grains. I like it quite a lot, but my honey wasn't so excited about the intense flavors and competing textures.

I served this alongside some local crabcakes that I got ready-made from Whole Foods. The crab is caught off of New Jersey and they make the crabcakes in-house. It felt like a cheat, but other than not being homemade by me, it really does fit the bill.

Since I also had to shell the peas (which was actually pretty fun - a first for me), I made up some crostini with bread from a local bakery spread with sheep's milk ricotta(my all-time favorite farmers' market item ever - it's amazing) , also from Valley Shepherd, and sprinkled with sage and greek basil from the garden, black pepper and a spritz of olive oil. This alone could make a perfect meal.

Farmers' Market: onions, spring garlic, spelt, peas, ricotta, pecorino-style cheese
Homegrown: sage, basil, parsley
Other Local Foods Vendors: crab cakes, bread
Pantry Exceptions: olive oil, black pepper
Could Do Better: chicken stock