Mushroom Risotto

This hearty dish hails from Piedmont, where rice is common and mushrooms are abundant. You can also dress it up by shaving a bit of truffle on top right before serving, to give it a woodsy perfume and flavor.

Ingredients:

1 TBSP olive oil and 1 TBSP butter
2 cups mushrooms, preferably porcini or baby bellas, roughly chopped
2/3 cup dry white wine
5-6 cups broth (use chicken or vegetable stock)
2 shallots, peeled and minced (or 1/3 cup of onion, finely chopped)
1 3/4 cups arborio or other risotto rice
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Pinch of sage

Procedure

Start by bringing the stock to a simmer in a saucepan.

Put the olive oil and butter in a deep, medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and shallots and sauté about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to combine. Continue to stir and sautè a minute to heat the rice.

Add white wine, bring to a boil, and reduce liquid by half, about 3-4 minutes. Add simmering stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring enough to keep the rice from sticking to the edges of the pan. Stir the rice almost constantly — to obtain the creamy sauce you're looking for in a risotto. Wait until the stock is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. This process will take about 25 minutes. The rice should be cooked but slightly chewy, like al dente pasta.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or chives.