Mushroom Risotto

Priya loves risotto! She loved it the first time we had it together while we were in Vieques.. I know she will order it at a restaurant if its on the menu. It got me thinking about how difficult would it be to make... Looking at recipes I found out that the rice used to make risotto is kinda special. It's called Arborio rice. It is a medium grain rice and it is firm and creamy due to the high starch content. It was definitely not easy to make because you have to keep mixing the rice and adding the broth little by little, till it is cooked. It took me around 30 minutes.. Here is the recipe from my itallian cookbook



Ingredients

• 2 cups mushroom (we used a mix of portabella and crimini)
• juice of lemon (1/2 lemon)
• butter 6 tbsp
  
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 shallot chopped
• 1 1/2 cup risotto rice (arborio)
• salt and fresh ground pepper
• 3 tbsp fresh grated Parmesan
  

Method

• Chop the mushroom really small and then toss it with the lemon juice
• Melt 2tbsp butter and stir in the mushroom. Cook over moderate heat till they give up their juices, and begin to brown. Stir in the parsley. Cook for 30 seconds and then remove to a side dish.
• Place the stock in a saucepan and simmer till needed.
• Heat 2 tbs butter with Olive oil in the same pan the mushroom were cooked in. Stir in the chopped shallots and cook until it is soft and golden. Add the rice, stirring for 1-2 minutes to coat it with oils. Add the mushrooms and mix well.
• Now on moderate heat add one small ladle full of the hot stock and cook until the stock is absorbed or evaporates, stirring the rice with a wooden spoon to prevent it from sticking to the pan. Add a little more stock, and stir until rice dries again. Continue stirring and adding the liquid a little at a time. After about 20 minutes of cooking time, taste the rice . Add salt and pepper.
  
• Continue cooking, stirring and adding the liquid until the rice is al dente, or tender but firm to the bite. The total cooking time of the risotto may be from 20-35 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the remaining butter and cheese. Allow the risotto to rest for 3-4 minutes before serving.