There's been a big sale on asparagus at our local Dominick's for the past week, so this past Sunday I made us some spring-inspired risotto for lunch. It was so good, I've been dreaming of it ever since!
Spring Risotto
3 T. olive oil
3 T. butter
1/2 c. onion, finely diced
1 c. Arborio rice
4 c. chicken or vegetable stock (You will probably only need 3 1/2 c.)
1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1 inch long pieces
2/3 c. frozen peas
6-8 oz. fresh spinach (or about half a bag)
4 T. grated Parmesan cheese
Juice and zest from one large lemon
Black pepper to taste
Bring stock to boil in saucepan. In another saucepan, saute the onions in the olive oil and butter until they're translucent. Add in the rice and stir until very lightly browned or starts to emit a nutty smell. Pour in 1 c. of stock. Stir continuously until stock is absorbed. Add another cup of stock. Continue stirring until stock is absorbed. If asparagus has thick stalks, add the pieces in at this point. If thinner, you may want to wait 3-5 more minutes before adding. Add in another cup of stock. Stir until absorbed. Add remaining stock. Stir. Add in frozen peas. When stock is fully absorbed, add in lemon juice, zest, Parmesan, and spinach. Mix until slightly absorbed and spinach wilts a bit. Add pepper to taste. Because of the probable saltiness of the Parmesan and stock, you more than likely won't need to add salt.
The whole process should take about 20 minutes. The proper consistency of risotto is for it to slowly spread over a plate-not liquid-y, but not a sticky mass.
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| Asparagus by Steve Cavrich |
3 T. olive oil
3 T. butter
1/2 c. onion, finely diced
1 c. Arborio rice
4 c. chicken or vegetable stock (You will probably only need 3 1/2 c.)
1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1 inch long pieces
2/3 c. frozen peas
6-8 oz. fresh spinach (or about half a bag)
4 T. grated Parmesan cheese
Juice and zest from one large lemon
Black pepper to taste
Bring stock to boil in saucepan. In another saucepan, saute the onions in the olive oil and butter until they're translucent. Add in the rice and stir until very lightly browned or starts to emit a nutty smell. Pour in 1 c. of stock. Stir continuously until stock is absorbed. Add another cup of stock. Continue stirring until stock is absorbed. If asparagus has thick stalks, add the pieces in at this point. If thinner, you may want to wait 3-5 more minutes before adding. Add in another cup of stock. Stir until absorbed. Add remaining stock. Stir. Add in frozen peas. When stock is fully absorbed, add in lemon juice, zest, Parmesan, and spinach. Mix until slightly absorbed and spinach wilts a bit. Add pepper to taste. Because of the probable saltiness of the Parmesan and stock, you more than likely won't need to add salt.
The whole process should take about 20 minutes. The proper consistency of risotto is for it to slowly spread over a plate-not liquid-y, but not a sticky mass.
Matt and I have been wanting to try risotto! Or more accurately, I want to try it and I want Matt to make it for me. Your recipe sounds really good!
ReplyDeleteIt's one of those foods that seems way more complicated than it actually is to make it. It's really easy, though try to have your ingredients ready ahead of time so you don't have to stop stirring.
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