Asparagus Risotto

Asparagus Risotto

Ingredients:

• 1 shallot

• 3 T salted butter

• Olive Oil

• 1 c. arborio rice

• 4-5 c. vegetable broth

• 1/4 c. parmesan

• 1/4 c. white wine

• 1 bunch of asparagus

• Fresh parsley for garnish

• squeeze of lemon

Dice up your shallot, measure out your rice, heat up your vegetable broth in a separate pot.

Prep the Asparagus. Snap the stalks and cut them up into 1-2 inch long pieces. Add to a pan with some olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, and a tiny squeeze of lemon. Let cook until you see some char.
You can also blanch or boil the spears, and put them in an ice bath to stop the cooking.

Cook the rice.
In a pot or large pan, heat up a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add your shallots. When soft, add 1 tablespoon of butter and the cup of arborio rice. Toast the rice until it becomes translucent.

Add wine to your pot and let the liquid cook out. Then, add your broth 1/2 cup at a time, letting the liquid cook out before adding more. Stir regularly.

When all of the broth has been absorbed, check for make sure the rice is done. It should be al dente, not too gummy. If it needs more time, let it cook or add a little bit more broth.
When done, add 2 tablespoons of butter and parmesan cheese, stir fully to incorporate. Add your cooked asparagus, stir, and let cook another 4 - 5 minutes.

The Story

This dish served as course number two of our conclave dinner. This story is here.
The original recipe calls for guanciale crumbles. I have dinner with vegetarians and decided to leave the crumbles out. You can totally cook up some guanciale in a pan separately, let the fat render, and then use as a topping. It would add some salty crunch, which honestly, would totally level this dish up. It's good as is, but who doesn't love a little crunchy topping.

Anyway, back to Risotto. I totally get why contestants on cooking shows always want to try and do risotto. And I also totally get why they fail in a 20 minute challenge. Risotto takes time.

I have some thoughts.

You have to watch the rice and stir regularly. I try to have everything else done or cooking when I start the rice because you have to focus and keep an eye on the pot. It will take time, please plan for about 40 minutes from start to finish.

You can cook your asparagus in the risotto. I did that instead of cooking it separately. Next time, I'd cook the spears separately and add at the end. If you like a little bite to asparagus, I'd do it this way. You'll have more control over the doneness of the veggies.

This is the basis for every risotto I make. Add chicken. Add mushrooms. Swap out shallots for leeks if you'd like. The process with the broth and the rice is the same. For extra flavor, cook all of those items in the same pot. Just remember to remove them before you start the rice.

Adding butter at the end really adds a rich flavor and mouth feel to the whole dish. I forget where I saw that, but it's certainly one of the final steps I've added to my cooking.

Finally, I love risotto. It's one of those dishes that evokes major family memories. As a kid, that was the only kind of rice I wanted. My mom would make risotto with onions, parmesan cheese, sometimes peas, I think, and saffron. We had yellow rice and I didn't know why it tasted so good. I do now. Saffron is magical. This caused my mom some grief because I only wanted to eat the "yellow rice." It wasn't until a few years ago i found out that on regular dinner nights (no company), she'd add some yellow food coloring to the regular rice so that I'd at least have a few bites. Good one mom.

Saffron or not, a good helping of risotto is good for any time of year. Add summer veggies. Serve it piping hot on a cold night.

We paired this with a glass of Husch Sauvignon Blanc. Enjoy.