Peppercorn encrusted filet mignon topped with gorgonzola with a side of asparagus zucchini risotto*.

Okay so not every meal I eat has to be over-the-top healthy! 😉  My filet was thinly sliced & oh so good.  We had leftover filet mignon from the holidays that we wanted to cook.  So we encrusted the filet with peppercorns (on one side) and grilled it over a gas flame.  Once it was almost cooked to our preference, we topped it with a tablespoon of gorgonzola crumbles and covered the grill.  Once melted, remove promptly, place on a platter & tent with foil for about 5-6 minutes for the juices to return back into the meat.

Risotto is one of the fabulously decadent foods that I love but despise making because you need to babysit it the entire time.  I’m a bit of a multi-tasker in the kitchen so I prefer not to sit and watch a pot but I made the sacrifice.  The recipe is as follows:

2 tbl of olive oil
1/2 of a medium yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 c of Arborio rice
1/3 c of white wine, preferably dry
4 c of chicken broth
1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed
1 small zucchini, thinly sliced

First, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Place the asparagus in the pot & cover. Cook for 4 minutes.  While that’s cooking, get a large bowl of ice water prepared for blanching.  Once 4 minutes is up, drain & place the asparagus in the ice bath to stop the cooking process.  Remove once the stalks are cold and bright green.  Slice in half and keep off to the side.

In your large dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion & garlic.  Stirring constantly.  After 3 minutes, add the rice and constantly stir.  This will toast the rice up nicely.  After about 4-5 minutes of toasting, add the white wine.  Stirring, constantly.  This should evaporate in 1-2 minutes.  Once that has, add 1.5c of the chicken stock to the rice.  Keep stirring until the rice absorbs all of the liquid.  This takes a few minutes.  Then repeat with another 1.5c of chicken stock.  Stir until absorbed.  Finally, add the final cup of chicken stock.  Stirring for about 2-3 minutes.  Then you will add the zucchini disks to cook.  At this point I added a splash more of the stock and covered the pot for about 2 minutes.  (Add more broth or water if necessary).  Uncover an stir again.  Then add your asparagus to heat through.  Serve immediately.  *Can be served alone for a vegetarian dish as well!

— Knead to Cook