Mushroom Risotto

2        T        Pomace Olive Oil

1        med   Yellow or White Onion, small dice

1        T        Fresh Garlic, minced

4        C        Arborio Rice

3        C        rehydrated dried or fresh mushrooms, roughly chopped, liquid

                   reserved & filtered. Use darker flavored mushrooms like blewits,

                   morels, black trumpets, porcini.

1        T        Porcini powder

1        T        fresh Thyme, destemmed and chopped

3        qt       chicken or duck stock, hot

TT                Salt and Pepper

1        T        Truffle Oil

1        C        Good Romano and/or Parmesan Cheese, finely grated

2        T        Whole Butter

1        t        Lemon Juice

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In a medium sized saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium flame. Add the onions, stirring occasionally until they are translucent. Add the garlic and allow it to bloom and soften slightly in the oil (2 minutes) raise the flame to high and add the mushrooms. Stir occasionally until the mushrooms have released their juice and the juice has mostly evaporated. Reduce the heat to medium again and add the rice, stirring to coat all of the rice with oil. Allow the rice to toast in the pan for 1 minute before adding enough of the filtered mushroom liquid to just cover the rice. If you do not have enough mushroom liquid to cover the rice, add enough hot stock to just cover the rice. Bring to a strong simmer and stir frequently. When the liquid has been mostly absorbed, sprinkle in the thyme, porcini powder and salt and pepper then add enough of the hot stock to just cover the rice again. Stir frequently to ensure the starches from the rice don’t burn on the bottom of the pan. As the liquid reduces this time, check the texture of the rice. It shouldn’t be crunchy but should have a little bit of tooth. If you plan to serve the risotto at a later time, transfer it to a tray and allow it to cool covered with a damp towel. If ready to serve, return the risotto to a sauce pot add a cup of the stock and return to a simmer. Just as the risotto makes the transition from watery to creamy, remove from the heat and add the butter and most of the cheese, stirring to retain the emulsion of the cheese and butter. Adjust the seasoning and stir in the lemon juice. Serve immediately topped with the remaining cheese sprinkled on top. Drizzle a few drops of  the truffle oil over each portion just before serving.

Serves 8 for a main course or 12 for a side dish.