spring green

in my mind -- and on the phone with anna -- i'd planned to make a fancy little easter supper for my husband, featuring lamb chops (which i've never actually cooked at home), spring vegetables (TBD), and a souffle for dessert.

in reality, i acquired so many vegetables last week, josh blanched at the idea of buying lamb, or anything else for that matter. what can i say? the newly arrived spring vegetables were just too tempting. i picked up a few at the ballard farmer's market, a few at the pike place market, and a few more at whole foods... and we went out several nights last week. oops.

so, i cooked with what we had. six lovely spring vegetables from our fridge. and combined them in one dish.

i should back up to say this is not my usual approach. i am strongly opposed to almost anything "kitchen sink"-style. many a frittata, salad, and risotto have suffered that muddled fate of the eat-down. and i do not support that.

in honor of spring, or new beginnings, or my eat-down-loving new husband, comforting myself with the belief that "what grows together goes together," i took it all... and made risotto. 

stinging nettles, baby fennel, fiddlehead ferns, fava beans, wild ramps! i used all of that (plus half a leftover shallot!) to make one very green and spring-y dish. and it was actually really very good. still i maintain, not the best way to highlight all of these wonderful treats.

what was? nettle pesto! i couldn't pack an entire bag of nettles into risotto for two, so i made a simple pesto with the remainder. here's how:

nettle pesto

blanch nettles briefly in salted water
blend in a cuisinart (drain water, if necessary)
add a peppery olive oil, salt, pepper to taste

enjoy dolloped on top of risotto, stirred into pasta, with halibut or salmon, even grilled spring lamb or steak. or, as i did first thing monday morning, with a poached egg.