Monday, February 14, 2011

Citrus "week" continues - Lemon Risotto

I am still working on perfecting my risotto, and in an effort to practice I decided to make a lemon risotto. I tried to employ a very basic method and incorporate a little lemony lightness.

I began by warming six cups of good chicken stock in a pot on the stove. In a separate, large pot, saute 2 cloves garlic and 3 large shallots in a pat of butter and a drizzle of olive oil. Saute until the shallots are translucent. Toss in a few sprigs of fresh thyme and marjoram. Add in two cups of arborio rice and 'toast' the rice for about 3 minutes, adding a little more olive oil as needed.
Once the rice is evenly toasted, deglaze the pan with 1/3 cup dry white wine. Let the alcohol burn off. Now, the fun begins -- it's time to start adding in the stock. Add a ladle-full of stock to the rice and stir over medium heat until the liquid is mostly absorbed. Repeat this until you have used up all the stock -- it will take 15-20 minutes.
It's all downhill from here: turn off the heat BEFORE the last ladle-full is completely absorbed. Apparently, and I just had this knowledge impressed upon me care of Top Chef, "proper" risotto is supposed to be creamy but a bit runny. It is not supposed to sit up in a heap. As I said, my risotto is a work in progress. To finish the risotto, stir in 1/2 cup parmesan, 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest and the juice of one lemon. Add salt and pepper to taste and dig in while it's hot.

I riffed on this recipe, thanks to Bon Appetit magazine.

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