Comfort Food, Italian Style

I imagine that most of you immediately think of a pasta dish(carbonara anyone?) when confronted with a title like this; but i was really thinking of risotto, specifically my favorite, mushroom and spinach risotto. I know more than a few people who find this dish challenging and or too time consuming for the home cook, but this is simply not so! Yes, there is a fair amount of stove top diligence required to produce a really yummy, creamy risotto, but its not rocket science and only takes as long to make as any simple pasta dish with the added advantage of being a one pot meal.

So what does it take to make a great risotto? 1. The right rice! Arborio is the most common risotto rice.

Short Grain Arborio Rice

A risotto rice must be a short/medium grain, the typical long grain rice found in the supermarket will not do. It will break down, losing its shape and consistency in the face of all the liquid used, usually twice the amount used for a typical rice dish. The short grain rices will retain their ‘toothiness’, while exuding a lovely, creamy starchy sauce. 2. Excellent home made broth is best, but i will admit to many times reaching for the container of store bought chicken stock. Make sure that you use a low sodium! 3. Whatever ingredients you’ve chosen to highlight. Keep it simple, showcase one or two prime, seasonal ingredients. To make the risotto pictured here you will need the following. Please be aware that almost all of the ingredient measurements are approximate. I’m pretty sure that the only thing i actually measured was the rice.

4-6 CUPS BROTH, HOT **

1 CUP ARBORIO RICE

2TB OLIVE OIL

3-4 DRY SHITAKE MUSHROOMS, sliced

1 LARGE PIECE DRIED BLACK FUNGUS, sliced

4-6 MEDIUM WHITE OR PORTABELLA MUSHROOMS, sliced

1/2 MEDIUM RED ONION, SLIVERED

1 MEDIUM SHALLOT, DICED

1-2 CLOVES GARLICE, MINCED

1# FROZEN, CHOPPED SPINACH

1/2TSP EACH, FRESH GROUND BLACK PEPPER, RED PEPPER FLAKES, THYME

1 TSP OREGANO

FRESH GRATED NUTMEG, TO TASTE, BUT AT LEAST 1/2 TSP

1-2 OUNCES BLUE CHEESE CRUMBLES

1-2 OUNCES SHREDDED SWISS OR MOZZARELLA CHEESE

**The amount of broth you will use depends on the age of your rice and of course your own personal taste, how juicy do you like your risotto? I usually use about four cups.

Start by soaking the dried  mushrooms in two cups hot water for at least twenty minutes.

Soaking dried mushrooms and some homemade chicken stock

While the mushrooms are soaking prep all the rest of your ingredients. Drain the mushrooms, squeeze out the excess moisture, making sure to save the mushroom water which you can use for part of your broth. Heat the olive oil and gently saute the onion, shallot and garlic, do not allow to brown.

Three Fungi, no waiting

Add the fresh mushrooms and cook until they start to wilt and give off moisture. Add the rest of the mushrooms, stir to coat with the oil. Add the rice, stirring to coat evenly with the oil and saute for a few minutes.

Raise the heat to medium high and pour in one cup of the broth, it should be bubbling merrily, stir until almost all of the broth is absorbed. Usually this only takes a few minutes. Turn the heat down a little now and add more broth a half a cup or so at a time, stirring gently to make sure nothing is sticking to the pan. At this point you should add all of the seasoning except the nutmeg.

Developing its wonderful, creamy texture

At this time you can pour yourself a glass of wine, go to the bathroom, set the table, etc. Just make sure that you come back and continue the stirring and broth addition every few minutes. The entire process, once you start adding the broth will take about twenty minutes. How will you know when its done? The rice should be tender, but retain its shape and have a little tooth (a la dente, like a good pasta). There should be a good robing of a creamy ‘sauce’ still visible. Add the spinach, and cook until its hot all the way through, add the cheeses and stir until they are almost melted.

Add the Spinach, Nutmeg, and Cheeses

Grate in the nutmeg and check the seasoning. Serve immediately, preferably on hot plates. This will serve four people.

Hot, Rich, and Steamy

So what makes comfort food? Certainly one factor is childhood tastes; although, since so many of us were picky eaters as children; it might be better to characterize comfort food as a taste of home, the aroma of love, the result of care, an act of magic that takes simple, everyday ingredients and transforms them into a culinary delight.