SOLE on SNAP: Day 18 Pesto Risotto for dinner

There's something quite magical about risotto. Maybe you don't think about risotto much, but I can assure you that when you have it made right, your life will never be the same.

The first time I had it was actually when I made it the first time. So I didn't have anything to compare it to. I got an Italian cookbook for Christmas from my aunt when I was in college. I cooked my way through that cookbook, and buttery mushroom risotto was a step along the way. When you put that much butter and cheese in something, it's just not possible for it to be bad.

The risotto I had been making was good, but not even in the same league as some of the risottos I've had in restaurants. The most memorable might be the seafood risotto I got at some little mom and pop Italian restaurant in Boston's North End. It was so simple and straight forward. But it was aaamaaaayyzing! With a crisp glass of pinot gris it was the perfect dinner.

Really good risotto is made by someone who has patience. Perhaps that's why mine doesn't quite rise to the level of the Italian mama's that I had in Boston. If you're patient with it, the arborio rice will release its starches in the most sublime way. And from a little bit of butter, stock and a handful of rice, you get something so seemingly fancy. But its a humble peasant dish, actually.

BREAKFAST:I had 1 cup of Cheerios with 1 tsp of turbinado sugar and 1/3 cup of milk. Jeremy had a Kashi TLC bar.
We each had a cup of coffee with about 1 Tb natural vanilla creamer.
LUNCH:
I had more of the cream of tomato soup and a salad. I also had a piece of toasted Italian bread with a little bit of shaved parmesean and some olive oil on it that my gracious coworker brought in. Jeremy had a salad and a Michaelina's Lean Gourmet microwave meal.
DINNER:
I made Quintessential Pesto Risotto from How to Eat Supper. I wish it was on the website, but it is not. You'll have to buy the book. It was AWESOME.

SNACKS:
I had a piece and half of "breakfast bread" that a coworker made and brought in. (We sure do know how to eat at my office...) In the afternoon, I had a cup of no sugar added hot cocoa, a stick of string cheese and a small apple. I also had a handful of Garden of Eatin' blue corn chips, that I took into the office to share. When I got home I had a Kashi TLC bar.
EXERCISE:
It was the last pretty day for a while, so I did a bunch of yardwork that needed done before the winter. Sadly, I put my beds to bed... haha. I pulled up all the plants in my garden except the radishes and salad greens. I also raked up the ground in the bare spots in the yard and planted grass seed, fertillized, and covered it with hay. It was a pretty good workout.

STATS:
Calories 1,885 (2,155 less 270 exercise)
Fat 92.3 g
Sat Fat 27.9 g
Cholesterol 126.6 mg
Sodium 4,571 mg
Carbs 268.5 g
Fiber 34.7 g
Sugar 71.7 g
Protein 70.3 g