Am I the only person, who every time I hear the word “risotto” immediately pictures Gordon Ramsay yelling at somebody?  “It’s RAW!”  “You donkey!!”

Just me?

I am a big fan of all the reality tv cooking shows, and one thing that the contestants on those shows are always screwing up is risotto.  So I had to give it a try.  Is it really that hard?

Nope.

It just requires patience.  Follow the directions, and you will have a lovely, creamy dish that tastes like a cross between rice and pasta, flavored with savory mushrooms.  Delicious.  And the best part is, now when I’m watching Hells Kitchen, or MasterChef, and they screw up the risotto, I can sit on my couch and smugly think “Oh, risotto… child’s play…”  😉

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence, Food Network
4-6 servings

Ingredients

8 cups chicken broth, low sodium
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 onion, diced, divided
2 garlic cloves, minced, divided
1 pound fresh portobello and crimini mushrooms, sliced
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper
1-ounce dried porcini mushrooms, wiped of grit
2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
Fresh Italian parsley, for garnish

Directions

Heat the chicken broth in a medium saucepan and keep warm over low heat.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1/2 onion and 1 clove garlic, cook, stirring, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the fresh mushrooms, herbs and butter. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes until lightly browned, season with salt and pepper. Drizzle in truffle oil then add the dried porcini mushrooms which were reconstituted in1 cup of warm chicken broth. Season again with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Saute 1 minute then remove from heat and set aside.

Coat a saucepan with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Saute the remaining 1/2 onion and garlic clove. Add the rice and stir quickly until it is well-coated and opaque, 1 minute. This step cooks the starchy coating and prevents the grains from sticking. Stir in wine and cook until it is nearly all evaporated.

Now, with a ladle, add 1 cup of the warm broth and cook, stirring, until the rice has absorbed the liquid. Add the remaining broth, 1 cup at a time. Continue to cook and stir, allowing the rice to absorb each addition of broth before adding more. The risotto should be slightly firm and creamy, not mushy. Transfer the mushrooms to the rice mixture. Stir in Parmesan cheese, cook briefly until melted. Top with chopped parsley before serving.