Mushroom Risotto

Some lovely friends of mine gave me a gift recently of a Back To The Roots Mushroom Kit which is a sustainable just-add-water garden-in-a-box kit which yields tons of fresh oyster mushrooms in less than two weeks!  I decided to make a mushroom risotto with a mixture of my home grown Back To The Roots Oyster Mushrooms and some local market cremini mushrooms.  It was very rewarding eating mushrooms I grew in my own kitchen!  Back To The Roots is a great company; you can find more info about them here: backtotheroots.com.

Makes 6 Servings

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1 1/2 pounds fresh mushrooms (shiitake, oyster or cremini cleaned and sliced)
1 large shallot, finely chopped
4 1/2 cups reduced-sodium canned chicken broth
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Olive oil
Salt
Fresh cracked pepper



Coat a large saute pan with olive oil, add the assorted fresh mushrooms to the pan and season with salt. Saute the mushrooms until they are soft and pliable. Turn off the heat and reserve.

In a pot, heat up the broth and keep hot on low heat while preparing your rice.

In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Saute shallot until tender, about 5 minutes. Add rice, stir until well coated and slightly sticking to the bottom of the pan, 1 to 2 minutes. Then add the wine and stir until absorbed, about 1 minute. Season with a big pinch of salt.

Add about 1 cup of warm broth to the rice. Cook, stirring frequently, until absorbed. Continue adding broth, 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly until most of the liquid has been absorbed, about 25 minutes total. You may not need all the broth.  The rice should be cooked until tender but not mushy; keep tasting it for doneness and to make sure it’s seasoned enough. During the last addition of stock, stir your reserved mushrooms into the rice.  Stir vigorously for a couple of minutes at the end of the cooking time which will ensure a creamy but tight consistency.

Remove pan from heat. Stir in Parmesan, a pinch of salt and a few turns of fresh cracked pepper and serve immediately.

IDEAS

Can‘t eat it all?  Eat your leftover risotto as a side dish the next day by heating it up in a pan with a bit of extra chicken stock or water.  You can also make awesome pan-fried risotto patties, see Risotto Leftover Patties!