Meatless Mondays: Creamy Dijon Asparagus with Lemon Edamame Risotto

White food doesn't photograph that well, ya know?  Natural lighting would have been better, but I didn't finish cooking this until 9pm last night.  But it was tasty.

I made Asparagus Salad with Creamy Dijon Mustard Sauce and Chopped Hard-Boiled Eggs from Once Upon a Chef, which was adapted from Jacques Pepin’s More Fast Food My Way.  The only change I made was to coat the asparagus with olive oil, toss with salt and pepper, and bake at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes.  And I garnished with parsley, because I scored a huge fresh bunch at the market.


The risotto was inspired by a recipe from The Kitchn.  Actually, I made a variation of their Spring Lemon Risotto with Asparagus and Fiddlehead Ferns a few weeks ago, yesterday saw edamame in something else, and decided to pair them up. Here's what I did:

Ingredients
5 cups vegetable stock (I made my own)
1 cup risotto rice
1...or maybe it was 2...tablespoons butter
2 scallions (green onions) - I chop the white parts finely and then cut the green parts into 3/4 inch segments
2 (small) cloves garlic, minced
zest of one lemon, juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup edamame (if from the freezer section, thawed)

1. I keep vegetable odds and ends in a bag in the freezer, and boil them in water when I need vegetable stock.  In this case, I simmered broccoli, garlic, onion, asparagus, carrots and a little salt while preparing the asparagus dish.  I then drained the pot so only the broth was left, and cooked the risotto.

2. While the rice is cooking, melt the butter in a skillet.  Lightly brown the garlic.

3. Add the white part of the scallions, followed by the wine, lemon juice, and edamame.

4. When rice is cooked, add to the skillet and mix.  Then add lemon juice, zest, and parmesan cheese.

I'm sure their version was better, but mine was simpler.