Recipe: Risotto with Mushrooms and Asparagus

Ingredients:

• Parmesan Cheese
• Arborio Rice (Half cup per person)
• Salted Butter (300gr)
• Olive oil
• Asparagus (x6)
• Mange-tout (x20)
• Leek (x1)
• Mushrooms - Whites (x3), Cèpes (x10) and Dried Morels (x15) -
• Onion (x1)
• Garlic (x 6 cloves)
• Vegetable stock cube (x1)
• Hot Water (700ml)

To make a tasty Risotto, you must follow step by step carefully. Serves 5.

• Put the Morels in a bowl with boiled water. The morels are naturally dry; you have to make them become soft (it will be ready when the morels will have a spongy texture).

• Clean and peel the white mushrooms, the leeks, the asparagus, the mange-tout, the onions and the garlic. Then, cut them in small pieces; mix the leeks, the onions and the garlic. Keep the white mushrooms, the cèpes, the asparagus and the mange-tout and asparagus in a side.

• In a large pan, melt 300gr of salted butter until the moment you see some bubbles (this step is important to make sure your ingredient won’t stick the bottom of the saucepan.)  Turn down the heat.

• Now, mix the leeks, the onions and the garlic (which you have just cut before) in the pan and slowly increase the heat. You have to continually mix it to make sure that your base doesn’t stick the bottom of the saucepan until the mix becomes soft.

• At the same time, fry your white mushrooms in another pan (low heat) with some butter.

• Rinse the Arborio under some cold water and directly add it into the pan with your base coating it in butter as you do so.  Add some water and keep mixing to make sure it doesn’t stick. You can also use some olive oil at this step to help.

• When the Arborio is partially/almost cooked (do not hesitate to taste), add the cooked white mushrooms carefully and keep mixing.

• The morels should now be ready and have a spongy texture. Add spoon by spoon the morel’s water into your main pan and mix all.

• Add the morels, the cèpes and keep mixing.

• Place the asparagus and the mange-tout on the top. Stop to mix and lower the heat at the minimum. Put the lid on the pan and wait around 5 minutes.

• During these 5 minutes, grate some Parmesan cheese and add it the risotto. Mix one last time and serve.

Top Tips:

• Mixing and stirring is the key! Keep mixing every time and make sure it’s not sticking the bottom of the saucepan.
• The morels’ juice gives a really good flavour to your dish – don’t throw it away!
• You can add some white wine in step number 9.  Just reduce the amount of water you’d add instead.
• Be organized and follow step by step.