Three Cheese Risotto

This is an incredibly rich risotto - and worth every minute of the 20 minutes you have to stand there stirring.  Really good stuff.  Put this in a pasta bowl, spoon some Osso Buco over it...OMG it is to die for.  Actually, I could make a meal of this with not much else...but I always make it when I make Osso Buco.  It's a perfect complement.  Be sure you only try this with arborio rice...the longer grains just don't work!

Found this recipe online in 2003...it says it came from a website called Culinary Cafe.  "Thanks" to them, because it is an awesome recipe!




THREE CHEESE RISOTTO

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
Salt and white pepper
6 cups chicken stock (have made with beef stock - even more rich)
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 pound Arborio rice
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup grated Asiago cheese
2 tablespoons chopped chives

Method:

In a large sauce pan, over medium heat, add the olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add the onion and season with salt and pepper.  Saute for 3 minutes, or until the onions are slightly soft.  Add the stock and garlic.  Bring the liquid to a boil and reduce to a simmer.  Cook for 6 minutes.  Add the rice and simmer for 18 minutes, stirring constantly, or until the mixture is creamy and bubbly. (check for doneness with a small bite of the rice).  Add the butter, cream, cheeses, and chives.  Re-season to taste with salt and pepper.  Simmer for 2 minutes and serve immediately.

Serves 8-10 (I don't know who's house she is from, but it wouldn't serve 10 of my people!)

Now, you'll notice, she doesn't use the traditional risotto method....where you heat the broth in a separate pan, saute the rice in with the olive oil and onions, add the stock by ladle-full, stirring until it is incorporated, more broth, stir, more broth, stir...yada yada yada.  I've done it both ways.  Something inside me makes me need to do it the traditional way.  Frankly, though, I don't see a huge difference...and it's one more pan to wash.  So, the last couple of times, I've just done it her way...and it's been great! (uh, I don't know why I assume it's a "her"...)

I hope you enjoy the risotto as much as I, and my family, does.  I've served this to guests as well...always heard accolades.  It is really delicious!

Bon Appetit, Y'all!

Braised Rice and Onions

I have "OMG!" written on this recipe print out - and it is an accurate description of what you'll say when you put the first bite of this luscious dish in your mouth.  This is not low cal...so if you are on the perpetual New Year's Diet...you can move on now.  My niece sent me this recipe in 1999 after she brought it to an Easter luncheon at her Mom's house.  I remember I had two Russian foreign exchange students with us that Easter (that's a huge holiday in Russia - bigger than Christmas is in the U.S. - really, really big <said in my Ed Sullivan voice>) and the boys liked this dish...and one of them didn't like many of the dishes I fixed so I was happy to grab a recipe I loved AND they seemed to like!!!

So, thank you Holly Diane, for sharing this deliciously wonderful dish!

BRAISED RICE AND ONIONS
Serves 4
Preparation 10 minutes
Baking Time 1 hour

2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup uncooked rice
4 tablespoons butter
4 cups thinly sliced onions (about 2 large) - note:  it was easiest to slice thinly and quickly with a mandoline, or using a sharp knife, by cutting the bulb in half, laying the flat side down for a steady base - made the work go a lot faster.
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper (she notes she used ground black pepper and it was fine)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Swiss or Jarlsberg cheese
Chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a medium saucepan, bring 2 cups water and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a boil.  Stir in rice, cover and simmer EXACTLY 5 minutes.   Drain immediately.

Melt butter in a 2 1/2 to 3 quart deep casserole dish.  Add onions and coat well with the butter.  Stir in rice, 1/2 tsp salt and the pepper.  Cover and bake 1 hour, stirring once or twice.

Up to this point, the dish may be made ahead of time.  When ready to serve, reheat and stir in cream and cheese...and a touch more butter, if no one is looking ;-p  Check seasoning, sprinkle with parsley, and serve.

Holly reports this recipe is from Mrs. Chard's Almanac Cookbook Hollyhocks & Radishes by Bonnie Stewart Mickelson.

I've tried adjusting this recipe by making it with whole wheat orzo pasta and leeks instead of rice and onions. I've also used brown rice (need to cook a little longer for brown rice).  I liked the altered recipes a lot, but I didn't love it like the original.  This recipe, I've found, is almost identical (a few differences in ingredient quantities) to Julia Child's recipe for Soubise.  This recipe has less onion and more cheese than Julia's.  Whichever one you try, the basics of rice, onion, butter, cream, and cheese...really, just can't be beat! This is a classic side dish you will enjoy adding to your repertoire of recipes.

It is delicious and fairly easy (especially if you have a mandoline for quickly slicing the onions).  Yum, yum for your tum tum...it is a keeper recipe...easy to double for a large group too! 

Bon Appetit Y'all!!!