Friday Recipe Blogging: Wild Mushroom Risotto

Ah, Friday Recipe Blogging , I hardly knew you...Once upon a time, late last summer and into the early fall, I tried to follow Medieval Woman's lead and post a recipe every Friday...then I was sucked into the black hole of my breakup and my teaching insanity.

But Medieval Woman (check out her new place!) asked me a few weeks ago to post my recipe for mushroom risotto, after I mentioned rather immodestly that I had made the best one ever. And I figure I might as well do that, since this constitutes about my favourite meal. Anything with mushrooms, and lots of them, is pretty much it for me.


WILD MUSHROOM RISOTTO

Now, this recipe is from a healthy eating cookbook, A New Way to Cook, by Sally Schneider (which is a really good book). Therefore, it's pretty modest on the old butter and cheese, etc. I am not so modest. I definitely put more butter and olive oil in this than she calls for, and maybe more parmesan. And I used probably 1/4 cup of mascarpone cheese, instead of her 1 1/2 tablespoons of sour cream. Also, more fresh mushrooms. Plus, cause I'm vegetarian, I use veggie broth instead of chicken. Do all of this, and yours too will be the best one ever! Here's the basic recipe, though:

1/2 ounce dried mushrooms, preferably porcini
1 cup boiling water
3 cups unsalted homemade chicken broth or canned low-sodium chicken broth
2 tsp. unsalted butter
1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 large shallots, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 fresh sage leaves, chopped, or 1/4 tsp rubbed dried sage
1 cup Carnaroli, Vialone Nano, or Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound fresh wild mushrooms
1 1/2 tbsp regular or reduced fat sour cream
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 to 2 ounces fresh white truffle, or more (optional)

In a small bowl, soak the dried mushrooms in the boiling water for 30 minutes.

Remove the mushrooms with a slotted spoon, reserving the liquid, rinse, and drain well. Coarsely chop the mushrooms. Set aside.

In a saucepan, bring the broth to a boil over high heat; lower the heat and keep at a simmer.

In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter with the olive oil over low heat. Add the shallots, garlic, and sage, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are translucent, about 4 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat to moderate, and cook, stirring, until the shallots are golden. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, until the grains look chalky with a white dot in the centre of each, about 5 minutes (Do not allow the rice to brown.)

Add the wine and cook, stirring constantly, until the wine is absorbed by the rice, about 3 minutes. Stir in the fresh mushrooms, the reserved chopped dried mushrooms, and 1/2 cup of the simmering broth. Pour in the reserved mushroom soaking liquid, taking care to leave any sediment behind. Cook at a gentle simmer, stirring frequently, until almost all the liquid is absorbed, 3 to 5 minutes. Continue adding broth in this fashion, 1/2 cup at a time, until the rice is tender yet still firm in the centre and risotto is creamy but not soupy.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the sour cream, 1/4 cup of the Parmigiano-Reggiano, and pepper to taste [and salt! - ed.]. Serve immediately. Serve with remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano for sprinkling, and shave the white truffle, if using, directly onto the risotto at the table.