Rainy Day Risotto

It rained, or threatened to rain, all day last Saturday. So feeling antsy and trapped indoors, I decided to make risotto. It was one of the few dishes I had all of the ingredients on hand for, it didn't require me to turn on the oven which would have only made the apartment muggier, and I wanted something that called for a little effort to distract me from my stir craziness.

The risotto only ended up fulfilling two out of those three requirements (standing over steaming broth for almost an hour, stirring endlessly will make you very hot and sticky, even if it doesn't heat up the entire apartment) but I'm still very proud of the results and would recommend the project to anyone in a similar circumstance. And since it looks like we're in for a repeat tomorrow, this weekend might be the perfect opportunity.

I used Alice Water's recipe from the Art of Simple Food. It's a weird cookbook and I don't necessarily recommend it, but true to its title, for a simple recipe like risotto, she won't steer you wrong. The original recipe serves four. I adapted it for two.

I served the risotto alongside frozen grilled eggplant and zucchini from Trader Joes that I defrosted in the microwave. It was a great accompaniment but if you plan on doing the same, I recommend patting the veggies with a paper towel before you serve them. They're a little oily.

Grate a little cheese on top for presentation (and because I can never have enough) and it's very impressive.

Recipe after the jump.

Risotto Bianco

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion, finely diced - same amount the original recipe called for and it wasn't overly oniony at all
• 3/4 cups risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli) - I've only ever used Arborio
• 3 cups chicken broth - I used organic, from Trader Joes
• 1/2 cup dry white wine - which can be substituted with a teaspoon of vinegar or a strong squeeze of lemon juice if you don't have wine on hand, I used both lemon and vinegar when I was wine-less and the risotto needed a little more acid and it was great
• Salt, to taste
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese - same amount the original recipe calls for, I love cheese!

To do:

1. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Make sure it's a pan that has easy stir access. Add the onion, and cook until it's soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Add the rice to the pan, stirring now and then, until translucent, about 4 minutes. Don't let it brown. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, bring the chicken broth to a boil and then turn off the heat and keep it covered so it stays warm.

3. Pour the white wine over the sautéed rice. Cook the rice, stirring often, until all wine is absorbed. If you're not using wine, just skip that step and add the acid to your first addition of broth. Add a cup of the warm broth; cook at a vigorous simmer while stirring occasionally. When the rice starts to thicken, pour in another 1/2 cup of broth while adding some salt. (The amount of salt you add depends on how salty your broth is.) Keep adding broth 1/2 cup at a time every time the rice thickens. Don't let the rice dry out. After 12 minutes, start tasting the rice for doneness and seasoning. Cooking until rice is tender but still has some firmness to it—20 to 30 minutes total. The final 1/2 cup addition of broth is the most important. Add only enough to finish cooking the rice without it becoming soupy. But don't let this stress you out, keep stirring and it will be probably fine.

4. When it's just about done, add the butter and cheese and stir to develop a creamy starch. Let it sit for two minutes to really thicken up. If the rice is too thick, add a splash of broth.