INGREDIENTS
Serves 6
1 c. Italian rice (look for Arborio, Carnaroli,
or Vialone Nano) rice
1 c. Italian rice (look for Arborio, Carnaroli, or Vialone Nano) rice
1/2 onion, finely chopped
4 T. mild extra virgin olive oil
1 c. Pinot Grigio or other dry white wine
4 c. light vegetable or chicken stock – hot
1 lb. fresh chanterelle mushrooms
1large bunch leeks, julienned and cooked in butter until just soft
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bunch Italian parsley, finely chopped
4 T. butter, unsalted, cut into cubes
1/2 cup Reggio Parmigiano cheese, grated
salt and pepper
Sauté the onion in 2 T. olive oil in a straight-sided heavy
cooking pot over medium heat until it’s translucent. Add the
rice and stir gently until the rice absorbs the oil. Do not brown
the rice. Reduce heat, add the wine and cook, stirring occasionally,
until the wine is absorbed into the rice. Add 2 c. hot stock and
stir well into the rice. Cook again, stirring regularly.
When the liquid is almost absorbed, heat
2 T. olive oil and 2 T. butter in a large skillet and add the
garlic and salt and pepper. When the oil is very hot, sauté the mushrooms and leeks quickly,
turning them frequently until they are cooked – about
1 minute. Don’t forget to stir the rice at least once. When
the vegetables are ready, pour them out onto a cookie sheet to cool
in a single layer, saving any juices that form as they cool.
Add another cup of stock to the rice
and continue cooking and stirring. When the liquid is almost absorbed
add the last cup of stock. When it is most of the way absorbed,
add the chanterelles, the leeks and the rest of the butter. At
this point the rice should be firm but cooked through. If the
kernels of rice are still hard and dry in the center, add a bit
more wine or stock to taste, and continue cooking at low heat.
When the rice is done, mix the grated cheese
thoroughly into the rice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve
immediately, perhaps sprinkling a bit more grated cheese on the
plates. Note that you can “arrest” the
preparation of this dish when the rice is half cooked, by removing
the rice from the pot and spreading it on a cookie sheet and allowing
to cool gently; when you’re ready to resume cooking, put the
rice back in the pot, heat gently with a bit of stock, and continue
on with the vegetable sauté as described above.
