Blue Apron: Tomato Saffron Risotto with Sautéed Summer Squash and Baby Greens Salad

I was a bit frustrated by Blue Apron this week.  First, my shipment was a day late, due to a problem with Fed Ex.  I understand that wasn't in their control, but when my shipment arrived, it was not in the best shape.  My recipe cards were wet and wrinkled and the scallions were smashed.  This is quite atypical of the shipments I've gotten lately.  On Thursday, we decided to cook our first meal of the week and realized that we were missing one of the main ingredients-the saffron.  We cooked without it, but I did send an email to Blue Apron expressing my disappointment with the situation.  I got a really nice email back and a credit to my account.  I appreciate great customer service and hope that I don't have to contact them again.  Mike started by washing and cutting up the produce while I got the risotto started.  I heated up some oil and added in the shallot and garlic, letting it cook until fragrant.  Next, I added in the tomato paste and red pepper flakes, cooking until it was dark and fragrant.  I added in the rice, would have added the saffron at this point, and water, heating until boiling and cooking for about 16 minutes.  Once the risotto was done, I turned off the heat and added butter and mascarpone cheese.  While the risotto was cooking, I heated oil in a non stick pan and added in the squash, seasoning it, and cooking it until browned.  Then, I added in garlic, salt and pepper, cooking it for 1 minute, and finally adding in some vinegar and cooking it 1 more minute.  I made a salad dressing of vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper and drizzled it over the baby greens and parmesan cheese.  We divided the risotto on our plates and topped with the cooked squash and chives.  We really liked the salad.  The baby greens were fresh and it was a nice, salad.  The risotto was a bit disappointing.  It was cooked right, but was definitely lacking in flavor.  The squash and chives could only do so much for a rather bland risotto.  I don't know if the saffron would have completely fixed this meal, but I wish I had the opportunity to try that out.  I am glad we got a new idea for salad and hope that the rest of our meals are a little more flavorful. 

FullSizeRender.jpg