Okay, so I HAVE made risotto before… but it came from a box.
*gasp*
and I freakin hated it.
I have had some amazing risotto… and when I was preparing myself for the possibility of making it to Round 3 in Project Food Blog, I received some cheese from Ile De France. They sent me a new Camembert and rather than make yet another baked cheese dish, i decided to try my hand at risotto.
yay!
And when i started generating ideas for my risotto, I thought I needed something else. Sure, cheesy creamy risotto sounds great but I need another little something to add to the mix.

Mushroom? Yeah, that will work. It wasn’t until after I made this dish that I told the foodie Dude about it and he said I should have used fancier mushrooms.
I hate when he’s right.
But when I grocery shop, sometimes I just pick up whats on the list and bounce… especially when so many other things are going on simultaneously. But my baby bellos were enough (for now) and next time, i will play with fancier ones.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Butter
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms (sauteed)
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup DRY white wine
5 cups Chicken stock
1/3 cup Ile De France Camembert cheese, cubed
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
I started by heating my skillet and melting the butter. I toasted the Arborio rice for a few minutes. Then I added the already sauteed mushrooms.
I added the white wine and 1/2 cup of chicken stock. With the risotto over medium heat, i kept stirring it around to ensure the rice was absorbing all the liquids.
Dice up your cheese…and try not to pick at it. Yes, it IS delicious but remember, its for the rice!
STOP Munching on it!
Continue to add Stock 1/2 cup at a time until the rice is soft (this involves tasting – unless you are uber professional and can tell by lookin at it when its done)… and obvi- use your salt and pepper accordingly. My chicken stock was very oniony so i didnt have to add any additional flavors… just a few pinches of salt.
With the last bit of liquid, add your cheese and watch the cheesy goodness melt into the rice and transform it to the most creamy pan of wonderfulness that did NOT come out of a box.
Cheesy rice… with mushrooms.
Yes please.Now that I am No Longer a Risotto Virgin, I am going to toy with a few more recipes… maybe some butternut squash risotto! or some leafy greens wilted into a creamy bowl of risotto.
Oh the possibilities are endless!
Thank you Ile De France Cheese for the AWESOME camembert! It was hard to resist snacking on while preparing this dish. And it totally made this dish deelish in every way!
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