WPL cooking classes continue to teach patrons tasty lessons!

Worcester Public Library continued its popular cooking program series recently with Chef Kim Youkstetter, a culinary instructor at Worcester Technical High School.   As part of WPL's  Healthy Living programming, cooking classes are taught monthly at the Main Library in the Saxe Room on Saturday afternoons from 2:00 to 3:30. Chef Kim has taught over a dozen classes here at the library. Kim provides patrons with recommendations on the best ingredients to buy, cooking tips, substitutions and diet-specific alternatives. All patrons get to sample the recipes she prepares and take home copies of the recipes.
Here are tips and recipes from her most recent class on Risotto:

Kim's tips on cooking risotto:

• Best rice to buy is Arborio (short grain Italian rice)
• Can substitute Sushi rice if needed
• Can also be made with barley and farro- will take longer to cook and won’t be quite as creamy
• Stock MUST be warm or hot when adding
• Stock must be added slowly, allowing time to absorb after each addition
• Garnishes may be cooked in or added at the end
• Good risotto should be creamy and have a little “flow” it should not “clump” on the plate
• Can be finished with heavy cream for extra decadence (and calories!)
• Experiment with other cheeses- I like an aged Gouda, or Manchego
• For vegan risotto, use vegetable stock or plain water, and substitute vegan butter and vegan Parmesan cheese.
• To make risotto cakes or Arincini, prepare risotto as directed and spread onto a buttered piece of parchment paper and allow to cool. Form into balls, and bread, or cut into squares and bread.

Kim's Risotto Recipes:

Basic Risotto  

1 ½ cups Arborio rice
4 cups stock (chicken/ vegetable)

½ cup dry white wine

3 Tbsp. Butter

1 shallot, minced

1 Tbsp. olive oil

¼ cup grated Romano or Parmesan

1 Tbsp. parsley, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Serves 4

Instructions:

1. Heat stock on stove top to just below a boil. Keep warm, but do not boil.
2. Sauté shallot in oil in sauce pot, stirring and cooking until translucent- do not brown.
3. Add rice and continue to stir to coat grains, allow to cook for a minute or two, but do not brown. They should become “glassy” looking.
4. Lower heat to medium/ low and add the wine all at once. Cook until mostly evaporated.
5. Add a ladle of stock (8 ounces) all at once. Continue to stir until the liquid is completely cooked out. Liquid should not boil, but rather be just below a simmer.
6. Continue to add stock, 1 ladle at a time, stirring and absorbing stock as you go. You are looking for rice that is cooked, but al dente (has a slight bite) but is not mushy. ** You may not need all of the stock**  This process should take about 20 minutes.
7. Remove from heat, and stir in the butter and the grated cheese. Risotto should be creamy and free flowing, if not, add a little more stock. Finish with parsley and serve.

Parmesan Risotto

6 cups stock (chicken / vegetable)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 shallot, minced
1 ½ cups Arborio rice
½ cup dry white wine
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste
Serves 4

Instructions:
Follow the same basic procedure as above, but use slightly more stock, as the amount of the cheese will make the rice sticky. You may find yourself adding more at the very end. 

More recipes can be found here.

Our Healthy Living Programs can be found on our Adult Classes and Programs  page. 

This fall, you can look forward to more cooking classes including: Thai curries from scratch, cheese making, healthy homemade soups, and a demo on energy bites that includes a cookbook signing with Colin McCullough, for his just published The Healthy Vegan Cookbook.