We went to my Uncle and Aunts house for a visit, long before Covid, and they cooked up this risotto. I loved it so much I asked for the recipe. It took me until we were well into our stay-at-home order, to attempt to make this. I don’t know what took me so long. Risotto is one of those dishes that either intimidated me, or I thought was labor intensive. I am here to tell you, it’s neither!
Now, that being said… it does take time, but that “time” isn’t strenuous by all means. Basically, you just sauté your veggie’s, add the rice, then add your broth a little at a time, stir, let the broth absorb, and repeat until you’ve used all your liquid. Not hard, just takes some time. You could just add your water in all at once, and cook your rice how you would typically make rice. But, if you do that, you are missing out on what makes this dish a risotto. That creamy, almost cheesiness that makes this dish, comes from the slow addition of the liquid. Not actually cream or cheese. Not that a risotto doesn’t have one or both, but really, the long cook of the liquid and rice makes this dish exceptional!
One of the great things about a risotto is it can be served alone or as a side. I usually just bake some chicken while I am making the risotto and that’s our meal.
Let me know if you try this recipe and what you think about it. Tag me in some photos or comment below! I love hearing from you guys!
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Cheers ~ Jeanne
Ingredients
- 6 1/2 cups stock (mushroom, chicken, or vegetable)
- 4 to 6 tbsp butter
- 3 to 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 leek all of the white and 2 inches of light green parts, cut in half lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise
- 1/2 onion thinly sliced
- 2 cups carnaroli, vialone nano or arborio rice
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 3/4 Ibs mixed fresh wild mushrooms cleaned and sliced
- 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 oz taleggio cheese cut into small dice
Instructions
- 1. Heat the stock an simmer in a saucepan to keep it hot. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the leek and onion and sauté for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender. Stir in the cinnamon and rice and cook for 2 minutes to coat with the butter and oil. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until it is almost completely absorbed.
- 2. Add the hot stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the liquid to be absorbed by the rice before adding more, until you've used 4 cups of the stock. At this point, heat 2 to 3 tablespoons of the butter in a second sauté pan over high heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and thyme, season with salt and pepper to taste and sauté the mushrooms as you continue to cook the risotto, adding the remaining stock 1/2 cup at a time as before. Remove the mushrooms from the heat when they are done.
- 3. When the final 1/2 cup goes into the risotto, stir in the sautéed mushrooms and their juices and remove the cinnamon stick. Check the rice for doneness. It should be creamy, but slightly al dente at the center. Tasting helps to indicate when the risotto ready, a total time of about 17 minutes from when the wine evaporated. Add more stock or water if necessary to complete cooking. Stir in the remaining butter and the cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- 4. Properly cooked risotto is rich and creamy but still with some resistance or bite: al dente, and with separate grains. The traditional texture is fairly fluid, or all'onda ("wavy"). It should be served on flat dishes and it should be easily spread out but not have excess watery liquid around the perimeter. It must be eaten at once as it continues to cook in its own heat and can become too dry with the grains too soft.
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