Saving September + White Risotto with Corn, Carrots and Kale

It’s been over a decade since I was in college, but something about this weekend reminded me of my first September at the University of Missouri, and my inaugural Saturday game day. So excited to join the ranks of collegians, I dressed up in crispy new jeans and a cozy cardigan—a look borrowed from J-Crew. Not long after joining my new friends in the bleachers, I found the beating sun explained why the older girls wore sundresses instead. In Missouri, summer hangs on.

In New York, autumn reigns. At our Saturday market in Socrates Sculpture Park, the crowd was unapologetically bundled in snug sweaters, sporting the season’s newest boots. Dozens of hands passed over peaches for pumpkins. I adore fall foods, but for the first time I can remember, the concord grapes and plums, heaped in their green cardboard cartons, are just barely tempting. We have plenty of time for that, I think. It’s only early September.

How wrong I am. After an hour in the park in thin layers, we had to retreat home and start again—Greta in a sweater dress and tights. Tights! At the market, she reached directly for the plums and concords—her wiser internal radar insisting it’s time to move on. So we filled our basket with them. But, there was still corn. And tomatoes. Proof that summer really happened, and just days ago.  

I’m grabbing hold of those ears, 50-cents a-piece regardless, shaving their kernels over warm bowls of risotto with Lacinato kale and young purple carrots. And, since it could very well be my last for a while, I’m even pouring a chilled glass of rose for Sunday lunch.

I'll come around. Back at home from the park, where I’d left the windows wide open out of summer habit, I cooked a pot of warm applesauce, heady with cinnamon, to warm us. I’ll admit, it’s helping me turn the corner. But slowly.....slowly. One spoonful at a time. 

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White Risotto with Corn, Carrots and Kale

Serves 2 to 4

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus for cooking vegetables

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 cup Arborio rice

1/3 cup dry white wine

2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups hot water {or organic chicken broth}

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus for garnish

1 to 2 ears corn, to preference, kernels shaved from the cob

1 bunch young heirloom carrots, trimmed and scrubbed, halved lengthwise if large

1 small bunch Lacinato (Tuscan) kale

Heat the olive oil in a heavy saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until it is soft and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Stir in the wine and cook until the wine has evaporated, 1 minute more. 

Stir in 2 cups of the hot water {or broth}, salt, and pepper, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and keep at a simmer, removing the lid to stir occasionally, until rice is al dente, about 20 to 25 minutes. Most of the liquid should be absorbed and the rice just cooked.

While the rice cooks, heat another tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the carrots and brown slightly in the oil. Add enough water to come about 1/3 of the way up the carrots and cook until just fork tender, but still deep in color. Add the kale and stir to wilt, 5 minutes more. Add the corn and cook until the kernels turn bright yellow but are still crisp, 1 minute more. Season the vegetables well and use a slotted spoon to remove them from the liquid.

Stir in another 1/2 cup hot cups of water to the risotto as needed; add the butter and cheese and stir. Stir in the vegetables, or serve the risotto in bowls topped with warm vegetables and coarsely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. 

All Photos © Sarah Copeland 2012