Tuesdays with Dorie: Arborio Rice Pudding

I am a huge fan of the Kozy Shack brand of vanilla rice pudding, so when I found out we'd be making it this month I was stoked, especially since it's my first time making it! In all honesty, it took me two tries to make it. I should have read the P&Qs first because I discovered that everyone simmered their rice for longer than the 30 minutes prescribed in the recipe. So the first try, I got rice soup. Late last night after cleaning up a nice mess my dog made for me while out at school (and instead of working on a very important homework assignment) I took another stab at it. After almost an hour of simmering, I got just what the recipe said I was supposed to get--thick, milky white goodness!

I chilled the pudding overnight and this morning, my mom and I each enjoyed a martini glass full of this creamy, delicious concoction! I topped it with some of The Pampered Chef's Sweet Cinnamon Sprinkles.....yum! Not sure when I'm going to make it again, but I'm so glad I had a chance to tackle it. Thanks to Isabelle of Les gourmandises d'Isa for selecting this week's recipe challenge. Run over to her blog for the complete recipe!

Barefoot Bloggers: Butternut Squash Risotto

Rachel of Rachel Likes to Cook chose this week's BB recipe challenge--Butternut Squash Risotto. I'd like to thank her for allowing me to step out of my comfort zone to make something new and different. I love butternut squash, so I figured this would be a wonderful dish. Lucky for me my friend, Vickie, was visiting from Texas and she was excited to get a taste of it too. We prepared it late at night after returning from the gym.

I had purchased the ingredients earlier that day. Can you believe that I spent about $13.00 each for the pancetta and the saffron? I was thinking, "man, for all the money I'm spending, this better be good!" I loved the smell of the pancetta and the onions. I'd honestly never cooked pancetta myself until this moment and I was so excited.

And then came the saffron. I don't know if there's any other saffron but the Spanish kind, which is the only kind the grocery store carried. It just smelled funny to me and at that point, I was hoping it came out tasting better than it smelled.

Well, the saffron gave the mixture a nice color and even more so when the butternut squash pieces were added. The squash came out so nicely, I had to sneak a few bite-size pieces before I added it.

Once everything was mixed, I ladled the risotto into bowls and Vickie and I both set out to try our new concoction. She liked it, although she said it was a little salty (probably from the pancetta). Me? I didn't like it so much. I just couldn't get over that strong saffron taste. Maybe it was just me. I had some of the leftovers the next day and it actually tasted better then. But I'm not sure if I'll ever make this dish again. I don't think enough of my friends and family like butternut squash enough to see it in this dish. Who knows? But thanks again to Rachel for the challenge!